Amazon Invests 680 Billion KRW in US X-Energy with Doosan Investment and Collaboration

Investment in 4th Generation SMR for Data Center Operation
Business Opportunity Expansion Expected for Doosan Enerbility and Others

The 4th generation high-temperature gas-cooled SMR 'Xe-100' being developed by X-Energy. Photo by X-Energy website

Amazon, the world's largest e-commerce company, announced on the 16th (local time) that it has signed an equity investment agreement with X-Energy, a U.S. SMR (Small Modular Reactor) company. X-Energy, which is invested in and partnered with South Korean companies Doosan Enerbility and DL E&C, is leading the development and design of SMRs, considered a next-generation energy source.

Amazon and U.S. institutions are investing approximately $500 million (about 680 billion KRW) in X-Energy. The event was held at Amazon HQ2 in Virginia, USA. Attendees included U.S. government officials such as Jennifer Granholm, Secretary of Energy; Glenn Youngkin, Governor of Virginia; Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner; as well as representatives from Amazon and X-Energy.

Amazon decided on this equity investment to meet the massive electricity demand required for operating its data centers. It also signed agreements with U.S. nuclear power operators Energy Northwest and Dominion Energy to actively promote the adoption of X-Energy’s SMRs. Amazon plans to provide initial funding for Energy Northwest’s X-Energy SMR (320 MW) project located in Washington state. This project may later be expanded to 960 MW. Since July, Amazon has also been exploring joint development and financing plans for SMRs with Dominion Energy, based in Virginia, which is reviewing SMR adoption.

Amazon announced a goal to introduce more than 5 GW of X-Energy SMRs by 2039, the largest SMR adoption target announced to date. This investment will secure the electricity needed for the construction and operation of data centers, where demand is continuously increasing. With Amazon’s investment, X-Energy, a leader in 4th generation high-temperature gas-cooled SMRs, is expected to accelerate the development of the 'Xe-100' reactor design. The Xe-100 is a 4th generation high-temperature gas-cooled SMR with a total generation capacity of 320 MW, consisting of four 80 MW reactors. It uses next-generation nuclear fuel the size of a tennis ball with enhanced safety, and the high steam temperature of 565 degrees Celsius produced during operation can be used not only for power generation but also as a heat source for various industries.

Aerial View of Xe-100 Power Plant by X Energy

This investment is expected to give momentum to X-Energy’s subsequent projects. It is also anticipated to boost the SMR businesses of South Korean companies invested in X-Energy, such as Doosan Enerbility and DL E&C. Doosan Enerbility, a global SMR foundry (specialized production company), signed an equity investment and key equipment supply agreement with X-Energy in January last year. Amazon’s large-scale investment is expected to expand business opportunities, including the potential for supplying X-Energy equipment.

In 2021, X-Energy was selected for the U.S. Department of Energy’s next-generation reactor demonstration program, ARDP (Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program), receiving an initial grant of $80 million (about 109.2 billion KRW). The U.S. Department of Energy plans to provide a total of $1.2 billion (about 1.638 trillion KRW) to support X-Energy’s demonstration of next-generation high-temperature gas-cooled SMRs. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), 114 GW of power will be needed globally by 2026 to operate data centers, and the Idaho National Laboratory conservatively projects that nuclear capacity will expand to over 404 GW by 2050. Leading big tech companies such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google, which dominate data centers, are increasingly announcing collaborations with nuclear companies capable of reliably supplying massive amounts of carbon-free electricity needed for AI technology operations.

A representative from Doosan Enerbility stated, "We expect a large volume of SMR production orders for data center power supply soon, and we are responding to future growth by developing advanced manufacturing technologies and expanding facilities for large-scale SMR mass production."