Amazon makes vague commitment to unproven nuclear tech to power Indiana datacenters

To feed its Indiana datacenters with plenty of juice, Amazon is funding the development of a new nuclear facility that will provide nearly 1 gigawatt of power. However, we'll have to see if this happens anytime soon, given the immature technology it's using.

Amazon said on Monday that it was funding the project with an undisclosed amount of cash as part of an expansion of its existing deal with X-energy, a next-generation nuclear power startup focusing on building small modular reactors (SMRs) powered by Tri-Structural ISOtropic (TRISO) fuel pellets and cooled by helium gas.

Amazon would tell us only that it’s “investing billions in nuclear energy projects” without getting specific on this project.

According to X-energy, the project will see Amazon fund the development of 12 of those SMRs, its Xe-100 model, in Sullivan County, Indiana, at the site of a former coal power plant. …