As population grows, this Eastern Washington county looks to nuclear power

The elected board in charge of a Central Washington public utility has agreed to keep pursuing small nuclear reactors as an option to meet future energy needs.

The Grant County Public Utility District anticipates that continued growth in the Moses Lake, Ephrata, and Quincy areas will require a new power source beyond the two big Columbia River dams it now operates.

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This week, the PUD board greenlighted further exploration of a small reactor option — billed as safer and simpler than previous nuclear plants, and more dependable than wind and solar.

“There is a lot of positive potential here," said Kevin Nordt, chief resource officer for the PUD. "We know there are a lot of unanswered questions. To get those answered is going to take some additional work.”

Nordt says the PUD is far from inking any deals. Its evaluation so far has sidelined a next-generation design from Portland-based NuScale Power.

Nordt says his team will now focus on the price and risks of a partnership with nuclear developer X-energy. That Maryland-based company initially proposed to build its first modular reactor complex at Hanford near the Northwest’s only operating nuclear plant near Richland, Wash.

The PUD says the Richland location was only proposed as a possible site and that no decisions have been made. A PUD spokesman says it's exploring other locations in Central Washington.

This story has been updated .