NRC issues first gas-cooled reactor permit in nearly 60 years

NRC has granted Long Mott Energy permission to build a generating station in Calhoun County, Texas. The agency says a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor has not been granted a construction permit in nearly 60 years.

Four Xe-100 units are covered. NRC says it has issued two other permits for advanced reactors this year. Long Mott is the third. The approval lets Long Mott Energy put up four reactors. The design named in the release is X-energy's Xe-100.

Dow's Seadrift plant is the main customer for the steam. NRC says the station is meant to produce high-temperature steam for industrial work at Dow Seadrift Operations. Power the site does not use would go out to the electric grid.

The review set several firsts for the agency. NRC says it had not previously approved a multimodule advanced-reactor plant, a core made of pebbles, or a design that refuels while the reactor is running. It also says this was its first look at a high-temperature gas-cooled design under the Licensing Modernization Project, a framework the agency calls risk-informed and technology-inclusive.

Chairman Nieh tied the decision to an 18-month timetable. "Today, the new NRC is issuing America's first construction permit for a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor in more than half a century," Chairman Ho K. Nieh said. "We delivered on the 18-month schedule, proving we can do rigorous safety reviews on predictable timelines that move advanced nuclear technology from design to construction."

Staff finished the safety review early. NRC says the safety evaluation was done in October, a month before the date on its schedule. In May the agency published an environmental assessment and found no significant impact. The permit covers construction only. Long Mott Energy still needs a separate license to operate, also from the NRC, before it can load fuel or run the reactors.

The announcement is release 26-083. NRC dated it November 9 and issued it from Rockville, Maryland.