BWXT considers locating TRISO plant in Wyoming

18 July 2024

BWX Technologies Inc has signed a cooperation agreement with the Wyoming Energy Authority to evaluate locations for a potential new TRISO nuclear fuel production facility in the state.

A vial of the finished TRISO fuel particles (Image: BWXT)

Under the agreement, BWXT will evaluate the requirements for siting a fuel fabrication facility in Wyoming. The roughly 18-month effort will evaluate such matters as potential factory locations, product specifications, facility design and engineering, estimated capital expenditures and operating costs, staffing and worker skill requirements, supply chain necessities, licensing and other requirements.

"This new effort will help establish the baseline for facilities necessary to meet anticipated demand for this specialised nuclear fuel and includes establishing the scale necessary for economic viability," the company said.

TRISO fuel comprises spherical kernels of enriched uranium oxycarbide (or uranium dioxide) surrounded by layers of carbon and silicon carbide, giving a containment for fission products which is stable up to very high temperatures. High-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) TRISO fuels are being considered as the preferred fuel in several advanced reactor designs currently under development.

"BWXT owns and operates the only two Nuclear Regulatory Commission Category 1-licensed commercial nuclear facilities in the United States, and we also manufacture fuel for the highly successful Canadian nuclear power market," said Joe Miller, president of BWXT subsidiary BWXT Advanced Technologies LLC. "For approximately 40 years, BWXT has furnished nuclear fuel across numerous government and commercial markets, giving the company a unique and highly credible background from which to draw on as we review options for a potential new facility."

"This is an exciting step forward for Wyoming's growing nuclear industry and another example that Wyoming is not sitting idle in this competitive market," said Rob Creager, executive director of the Wyoming Energy Authority. "Evaluating the potential to fabricate fuel on Wyoming soil will bring us closer to creating a viable full nuclear industry that will add value to our already robust energy portfolio."

BWXT is the only US company to manufacture irradiation-tested uranium oxycarbide TRISO fuel using production-scale equipment. As a participant in the US Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy's Next Generation Nuclear Plant programme for more than 15 years, BWXT has developed the expertise to manufacture TRISO-coated kernels. Under the DOE's Advanced Gas Reactor Fuel Development Program, BWXT has manufactured and certified TRISO-coated kernels and fuel compacts in production-scale quantities at its Specialty Fuel Facility in Lynchburg, Virginia.

BWXT has been heavily engaged with the State of Wyoming in evaluating options for constructing and deploying micro-reactors in the state since 2023. The company is currently working on a contract with the Wyoming Energy Authority to assess the viability of deploying small modular reactors in the state as a source of resilient and reliable energy to augment existing power generation resources. It has also signed agreements with Wyoming-based businesses such as L&H Industrial, Tata Chemicals Soda Ash Partners LLC and others in support of the goal of micro-reactor deployment in the state.

"As part of our all-of-the-above energy strategy, the possibility of a nuclear fuel fabrication facility here in Wyoming is exciting," Governor Mark Gordon said. "As the world's energy demands continue to rise, Wyoming must stay focused on protecting our core industries while continually augmenting our sources of energy. Wyoming has it all. Nuclear has been a stalwart in our energy portfolio, and like coal, can start with raw materials mined in Wyoming, processed in Wyoming, and used in Wyoming. A true trifecta."

Researched and written by World Nuclear News