Fluor Corporation has announced it has signed a contract with X-energy to support the company’s proposed advanced nuclear project at Dow’s UCC Seadrift Operations in south Texas. 

 

The agreement kicks off with Front-End Loading Stage 2 (FEL-2) services, focusing on project definition, strategic planning, feasibility assessment, cost control, and risk mitigation. Fluor will recognize the undisclosed contract value for this initial work in the first quarter of 2026.

 

The project aims to deploy four 80-megawatt small modular reactor (SMR) units to provide Dow’s Seadrift site with carbon-free electricity and industrial steam, replacing aging energy infrastructure. 

 

Backed by the US Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP), the initiative is part of a push to accelerate advanced nuclear technology commercialization. A construction permit application was filed in March 2025 and is under review by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

 

“X‑energy’s technology offers a powerful pathway for small modular reactors to deliver safe, reliable and fit-for-purpose baseload power in an industrial setting,” said Pierre Bechelany, Fluor’s Business Group President of Energy Solutions. “With eight decades of nuclear experience, Fluor brings the proven expertise and disciplined execution required to help advance this landmark project.”

 

Selected by the DOE in 2020, X-energy has been developing, licensing, and preparing to build its XE-100 SMR and a TRISO-X fuel fabrication facility. The Seadrift project is expected to become the first grid-scale advanced nuclear reactor to serve an industrial facility in North America.