Amazon.com, Inc. has invested in the nuclear energy company X-Energy (XE.US), and the pricing of its IPO on the US stock market exceeded the upper limit of the range, raising $1.02 billion.

X-Energy Inc., a nuclear company funded by Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN.US), will debut on the Nasdaq on Friday Eastern Time. The initial public offering (IPO) in the United States has been increased in size, with a final offering price higher than the previously recommended range, successfully raising $1.02 billion. The Maryland-based company announced on Thursday that it would sell 44.3 million shares at a price of $23 per share. The previous recommended range set by X-Energy was $16 to $19 per share. Based on the IPO offering price and the total number of outstanding shares listed in its filings, the company is valued at approximately $9.1 billion. X-Energy is primarily engaged in the design of small modular nuclear reactors and advanced nuclear fuel manufacturing. Its reactors use a "pebble" fuel called Triso (Tri-structural Isotropic) - uranium cores the size of poppy seeds, with higher burning temperatures and longer burning times than traditional fuel. The company plans to use its reactors to power industrial facilities and artificial intelligence data centers, and has signed agreements with Dow, Inc., Amazon.com, Inc., and Centrica Plc. Documents show that Ark Investment Management intends to purchase up to $105 million worth of shares at the IPO offering price. This IPO comes as multiple companies are vying to bring the first small modular reactor to market in the United States. X-Energy aims to complete the first deliveries in the early 2030s. Citigroup analyst Vikram Bagri wrote in a report to clients on April 17 that the IPO launch by X-Energy "demonstrates that investor interest in small modular reactors continues to be strong". The documents also indicate that founder and chairman Kamal Ghaffarian holds 61% of the company's Class B shares, while affiliated entities of Ares Management Corp. own 26%. According to the documents, X-Energy had a net loss of approximately $390 million last year (excluding government grants) with revenue of $94 million; compared to a net loss of $126 million and revenue of $84 million in the same period the previous year. The IPO is jointly led by J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Jefferies Financial Group Inc., and Moelis & Co. The company will be listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market on Friday with the stock symbol "XE".