‘Global race for AI dominance’ could start at Eastern WA nuclear site

RICHLAND – The Department of Energy wants to hear from developers interested in building data centers and artificial intelligence infrastructure at 16 sites nationwide, one of them in Richland.

DOE issued a “request for information” last week to assess industry interest and gather information on potential technology and economic considerations. It also wants information on locating new nuclear and other energy generation facilities with the data centers.

Under DOE’s ideal timeline, infrastructure construction for artificial intelligence data centers would start by the end of this year, with operations to start in 2027.

The project is being launched to ensure American leadership in artificial intelligence, said Michael Kratsios, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

“The global race for AI dominance is the next Manhattan Project, and with President Trump’s leadership and the innovation of our national labs, the United States can and will win,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright, said in a statement.

DOE includes Richland on its list of possible sites because it is home to DOE’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, which could lead to a partnership with developers on advanced hardware for next-generation data centers and power systems needed to run the data centers.

Although the request for information says that DOE is interested in leveraging its land for AI development, the 295 acres in Richland is former Hanford nuclear site land transferred by DOE via the Tri-City Development Council to the city of Richland in 2015 for economic development as part of a new Advanced Clean Energy Park.

The proposed acreage is on Horn Rapids Road just north of Framatome’s nuclear fuel manufacturing plant, although other sites could be put forward, according to DOE.

The Department of Energy is considering sites, including in Richland, for the data centers that power artificial intelligence.

The Tri-Cities has the highly skilled labor needed to build and operate power generation facilities for a data center, according to DOE.

The request for information also mentions that small modular reactors envisioned for the Tri-Cities area could provide power for the data center.

Amazon and Energy Northwest of Richland already are working together on a proposed X-energy advanced small nuclear power plant north of Richland.

Energy Northwest could eventually build out the project to include 12 modules with a total generating capacity of up to 960 megawatts.

Grant PUD also has been exploring the possibility of small modular nuclear reactors.

DOE said that the Tri-Cities could offer construction costs significantly lower than the national average and that it has a stable, dry climate with low humidity and minimal natural disaster risk, making it ideal for reliable operations.

Atlas Agro, the European fertilizer maker that plans to build a $1.3 billion plant in Richland to produce carbon-free fertilizer for Northwest farmers, is apparently interested in a data center on the Richland land identified by DOE.

Richland Deputy City Manager Joe Schiessl said Atlas has expressed interest in acquiring a site west of its 150-acre site at Stevens Drive and Horn Rapids Road.

“An expression of interest has been provided from Atlas Agro for a data center opportunity that we’ve been discussing,” he told the Richland City Council during a March 25 workshop.

Atlas Agro entered a purchase and sale agreement for the original 150 acres with the port about two years ago. It recently notified the port it intends to move forward with buying it.

To the north of the land DOE believes would work for an AI data center are 425 acres of former Hanford nuclear site land that Richland is considering selling to an undisclosed buyer for a $4.5 billion project related to advanced nuclear fuel. It would employ 1,000 workers.

In 2011, the Tri-City Development Council requested 1,341 acres of the Hanford nuclear site, which then covered about 586 square miles, for economic development.

Land near Horn Rapids Road had not been used for operations or radioactive waste disposal as the Hanford site was operated from World War II through the Cold War to produce nearly two-thirds of the plutonium for the nation’s nuclear weapons program.

TRIDEC said as it worked to get the land transferred from DOE for economic development that it could support 2,400 to 3,500 jobs.

A Hanford land use plan sets aside about a 10th of the site for industrial use, but most of the nuclear reservation would be reserved for conservation and preservation as environmental cleanup is completed decades from now.

Tri-City Herald reporter Wendy Culverwell contributed to this article.