Nuclear startup X-energy began its investor roadshow Wednesday as it works toward its IPO, setting its target price between $16 and $19 per share, according to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. If it lists at the high end, the startup could net about $814 million.
X-energy and its peers have been riding a renewed wave of interest in fission power as demand for electricity has surged on the back of AI data centers and societywide electrification.
Amazon is one of X-energy’s biggest backers. The tech giant led a $500 million Series C-1 round and has pledged to buy as much as 5 gigawatts of nuclear power from the company by 2039.
The IPO is sure to come as a relief to X-energy’s investors, which have put about $1.8 billion into the company, according to PitchBook. The startup had previously attempted to go public via reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company, but the two parties canceled the deal in 2023 as the SPAC craze petered out.
X-energy’s reactor is what’s known as a high-temperature, gas-cooled reactor. Inside, uranium encased in spheres of ceramic and carbon is cooled by helium gas. The gas then transfers heat to a steam turbine loop to generate electricity. The fuel design, known as TRISO, is expected to be safer than previous fuel arrangements, though it’s not widely used today.
The startup said in its SEC filing that it’s already embroiled in a patent dispute with another company that recently went bankrupt. Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation (USNC) went bankrupt in 2024, and its assets were purchased in bankruptcy to form Standard Nuclear. X-energy alleges that USNC infringed on its fuel fabrication patents and that the matter hasn’t been resolved to its satisfaction during the course of the bankruptcy proceedings.
Outside of China, development of new nuclear reactors has all but stalled, stymied by delays and cost overruns. A new breed of startups hopes that by shrinking reactors, they’ll be able to overcome some of the challenges that have beset traditional designs.
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