Amazon, American Electric Power and X-energy have agreed to explore building a 960-megawatt advanced nuclear plant in Sullivan County, Indiana, on land once occupied by the retired Breed Generating Station.
The joint development agreement, announced on Monday, is an early-stage feasibility deal rather than a construction commitment. If the project clears technical, regulatory and financial hurdles, it would add nearly a gigawatt of carbon-free baseload power to the regional grid and become one of the largest announced small modular reactor projects in the United States.
Amazon is providing development funding and intends to buy electricity from the plant under a long-term contract if it is built. The company has increasingly turned to nuclear energy as it seeks reliable power for data centers while pursuing its goal of net-zero carbon emissions across operations by 2040.
A coal site for nuclear power
The proposed facility would use 12 X-energy Xe-100 reactors, each rated at about 80 MW, for a combined capacity of 960 MW. The units would be added in phases and connected directly to the regional grid.
The site is an AEP-owned brownfield near the former Breed Generating Station in Sullivan County. Repurposing the former coal-plant location could reduce the need for new transmission corridors and limit disruption compared with developing a greenfield site.
AEP subsidiary Indiana Michigan Power said early field work and environmental surveys began around the site in September. The company said the proposed plant would be owned and operated by AEP if it proceeds.
What the deal does — and does not do
The agreement commits the companies to feasibility work, including site development, licensing, infrastructure and property rights, community engagement, Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing, PJM interconnection approvals and financing decisions.
It does not authorize construction. The partners must still reach a final investment decision, and no construction schedule or expected startup date has been released.
AEP said its agreements with Amazon and X-energy include capital protections and financial safeguards. Chief executive Bill Fehrman said those protections are essential for any potential nuclear project to move forward while protecting affordability for existing customers.
“Advanced nuclear energy has the potential to provide dependable power for over half a century while supporting economic growth in our communities,” Fehrman said.
Amazon’s growing nuclear bet
The Indiana project is the second commercial deployment under Amazon and X-energy’s collaboration, which aims to bring more than 5 GW of new nuclear capacity to the U.S. grid by 2039.
The first is the planned Cascade Advanced Energy Facility in Washington State with Energy Northwest. Amazon has also pursued nuclear power agreements elsewhere as artificial intelligence, cloud computing and data center expansion sharply increase electricity demand.
Josh Weissman, Amazon’s vice-president of data center infrastructure capacity delivery, said the Indiana project would help the company serve customers and advance its climate goals.
“Together, we’re looking to develop nearly a gigawatt of carbon-free power for the regional grid and pay our full costs without passing them to others,” Weissman said.
The reactor technology
X-energy’s Xe-100 is an 80-MW high-temperature gas-cooled reactor. It uses helium as a coolant and TRISO fuel, a coated-particle fuel designed to retain radioactive material within multiple protective layers.
The U.S. Department of Energy has described TRISO as “the most robust nuclear fuel on earth” because of its ability to withstand extreme temperatures without melting. X-energy says the design’s safety characteristics allow deployment on a compact footprint closer to centers of electricity demand.
The technology remains relatively unproven at commercial scale. X-energy’s first Xe-100 deployment, a proposed four-unit plant at a Dow manufacturing site on the Texas Gulf Coast, is in the final stages of a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission construction-permit review.
Indiana’s nuclear ambitions
Indiana has made advanced nuclear energy a central part of its energy strategy. Since 2025, Governor Mike Braun and the Indiana General Assembly have approved policies including investment and manufacturing tax credits and the Indiana Advanced Nuclear Community programme.
Braun said the Sullivan County project could create well-paying jobs, strengthen the electric grid and position Indiana as a national leader in advanced nuclear energy.
“Indiana is building an energy future that prioritizes affordability for Hoosier families and businesses while driving economic growth,” Braun said.
Market response
X-energy shares rose about 5% following the announcement. The gain, however, left the stock down more than 60% year to date, reflecting investor caution about the long timelines, high capital costs and regulatory risks facing advanced nuclear developers.
The Indiana agreement gives X-energy another high-profile commercial partner and strengthens its project pipeline, which the company values at roughly 11.5 GW. But the market’s muted longer-term reaction underscores that the project remains years away from delivering electricity.
Additionally, the Indiana nuclear proposal is part of a broader effort to meet rising U.S. electricity demand through new generation, while transmission upgrades offer another way to expand the grid’s ability to deliver power. In Virginia, the U.S. Department of Energy has committed up to $50 million toward Appalachian Power transmission improvements expected to add about 290 MW of capacity. The project will combine reconductoring with dynamic line rating technology to increase the use of existing power corridors.
Factsheet
- Project: Proposed 960 MW advanced nuclear power plant in Sullivan County, Indiana.
- Location: Near the former Breed Generating Station, a retired AEP coal plant site.
- Partners: X-energy, American Electric Power (AEP) and Amazon.
- Agreement type: Joint Development Agreement for feasibility work.
- Status: Feasibility stage; no construction decision, timeline or final investment decision announced.
- Reactor technology: X-energy Xe-100 small modular reactor.
- Number of reactors: 12.
- Capacity per reactor: About 80 MW.
- Total capacity: 960 MW, or nearly 1 GW.
- Reactor design: High-temperature gas-cooled reactor.
- Coolant: Helium.
- Fuel: TRISO fuel.
- Phased build: Reactors would be added in phases.
- Grid connection: Electricity would connect directly to the regional grid.
- Ownership and operation: AEP would own and operate the plant if it is built.
- Amazon’s role: Milestone-based development funding and intended long-term power purchase.
- AEP’s role: Site owner, utility expertise and prospective plant owner-operator.
- X-energy’s role: Supplier of the Xe-100 reactor and fuel technology.
- Next steps: Site development, licensing, property and infrastructure rights, community engagement, NRC licensing, PJM interconnection approval and financing decisions.
- Broader Amazon-X-energy target: More than 5 GW of new U.S. nuclear capacity by 2039.
- Related project: Cascade Advanced Energy Facility in Washington State, developed with Energy Northwest.
- Project ranking: Third announced commercial Xe-100 project in the U.S. and fourth announced worldwide.
- X-energy pipeline: Approximately 11.5 GW.
- Indiana policy support: Investment and manufacturing tax credits and the Indiana Advanced Nuclear Community programme.
- Market reaction: X-energy shares rose about 5% on the announcement but remain down more than 60% year to date.
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