--- title: "Fermi Inc. hits $3.42, a 52-week low, as an NRC draft backs four reactors its $62.5 million cannot fund" description: "The first accelerated, applicant-written environmental review in NRC history preliminarily backs the combined license for Fermi's four-reactor, 17 GW Project Matador. The same session printed a 52-week low, with the filings pricing the build at $70 billion to $90 billion against $62.5 million of quarter-end cash." publisher: "The Inference" section: "Energy" published: 2026-10-10T01:21:31.557Z modified: 2026-10-10T01:21:31.557Z canonical: https://theinference.org/article/fermi-inc-hits-3-42-a-52-week-low-as-an-nrc-draft-backs-four-reactors-its-62-5-million-cannot-fund language: en keywords: "Nuclear, Data Centers, NRC, Project Matador, Fermi Inc." --- # Fermi Inc. hits $3.42, a 52-week low, as an NRC draft backs four reactors its $62.5 million cannot fund > The first accelerated, applicant-written environmental review in NRC history preliminarily backs the combined license for Fermi's four-reactor, 17 GW Project Matador. The same session printed a 52-week low, with the filings pricing the build at $70 billion to $90 billion against $62.5 million of quarter-end cash. ## The EIS opens for comment the day the stock hits $3.42 Two verdicts on Project Matador landed in one session on October 9 [1][2]. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission published a draft environmental impact statement for Fermi's four planned AP1000 reactors and opened 45 days of public comment [1]. [Fermi Inc.](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/fermi-inc) (FRMI) [fell 6.28% to $3.42, a 52-week low](https://www.investing.com/news/company-news/fermi-inc-stock-hits-52week-low-at-342-usd-93CH-4941641) [2], leaving a company founded in January 2025 and listed at a reported $15 billion valuation on a $682 million raise [4] worth $2.70 billion [3]. ## A preliminary yes for a 17 GW campus The draft EIS carries a preliminary recommendation in favor of issuing the combined operating license, pending the safety review, for the Texas Tech University campus that has grown from 11 GW, 4.4 of them nuclear, toward 17 GW [1][4]. It was the [first draft EIS finished under an accelerated NEPA pilot](https://www.ans.org/news/article-8479/fermi-america-blue-energy-make-strides-in-texas/) in which the applicant wrote the document under NRC supervision [1]. [The Federal Register notice](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/search?conditions%5Bterm%5D=NRC-2026-0100) ran on October 9; comments close November 23 under docket NRC-2026-0100, and a final EIS is targeted for December [5][1]. ## The binding lease is not binding yet Fermi's first binding customer lease, [the August deal with AI cloud operator TensorWave](https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/fermi-signs-agreement-with-tensorwave-for-up-to-650mw-of-data-center-capacity-at-project-matador-site/) for 222 MW with rights up to 650 MW [1][4], was signed on August 9 and is still not effective. Its closing slipped from September 30 to October 31 while Fermi [negotiates a guaranty from an unnamed investment-grade counterparty](https://financefeeds.com/fermi-tensorwave-lease-guaranty-october-31/), and the closing conditions also include project-level financing sufficient to fund construction [6][7]. The $6.5 billion, 15-year headline is contracted revenue only if both arrive [7]. ## The balance sheet funds almost none of it At its most recent quarter Fermi reported [$62.54 million of cash against $576.39 million of debt and a $737.89 million trailing net loss](https://au.finance.yahoo.com/quote/H3V.DE/key-statistics/) [3]. [The second-quarter 10-Q still carries going-concern language](https://financefeeds.com/fermi-tensorwave-lease-closing-october-31-deadlines/) and prices the full build at $70 billion to $90 billion [6]. That gap is the who-pays: the money cannot come from this balance sheet, so it must come from new equity sold into a tape that has nearly halved the company since June, and the dilution lands on today's holders [3][6]. *Chart: **Fermi holds 11 cents of cash for every dollar of debt** Bar chart comparing Fermi's $62.54 million of quarter-end cash with $576.39 million of total debt and a $737.89 million trailing net loss* *Quarter-end cash, total debt and trailing net loss for Fermi Inc., in millions of dollars, from its key statistics as collected by Yahoo Finance on October 9, 2026; the second-quarter 10-Q prices the full Project Matador build at $70 billion to $90 billion. [3]* Two contract tests sit inside the quarter. On November 10 the $500 million MUFG turbine facility steps quarterly principal from 5% to 10% of the $444.9 million drawn unless a 400 MW deal is signed [6]. The Texas Tech ground lease demands a notice to proceed by December 31 backed by a 200 MW first tenant and phase-one financing [6]. TensorWave clears the second bar and misses the first [6]. *Chart: **Fermi's market value has nearly halved since June 30** Column chart of Fermi's market value: $4.29B at December 31, 2025, $3.21B at March 31, 2026, $5.12B at June 30, 2026, and $2.70B on October 9, 2026* *Market value at quarter ends and on October 9, 2026, as reported by Yahoo Finance for Fermi Inc. Fermi listed in October 2025. [3]* ## Turbines are on the ground; revenue is not The first Siemens gas turbines reached the site near Amarillo in September, and more than $1.5 billion is invested with roughly 6 GW permitted [6][4]. Revenue starts only when finished halls are delivered to TensorWave, in phases from late 2027 into the first quarter of 2028 [6]. ## A founder in court, a vote on October 30 A Texas business court [denied every emergency request](https://www.morningstar.com/news/pr-newswire/20260917ny51004/texas-business-court-denies-former-ceos-request-for-emergency-relief-against-fermis-board) from co-founder Toby Neugebauer on September 16, holding that state law permits the bylaw amendments he challenged [8]. SEC filings say Fermi terminated him for cause [1]. His amended suit against three directors goes on, and shareholders vote at the October 30 annual meeting on his call for an independent review, with his stake near 22% [9][6]. ## Six dates decide the fourth quarter Blue Energy, racing the same Texas clock, filed the first part of its construction permit for five BWRX-300s at the Port of Victoria on September 16 [1]. For Fermi the calendar runs: annual meeting October 30, lease close October 31, MUFG test November 10, comments close November 23, final EIS in December, Texas Tech deadline December 31 [6][1]. Management wrote that its plans alleviate the going-concern doubt [6]. The NRC has answered the environmental question. Nobody has answered the financing one. ## Takeaway The NRC's draft EIS preliminarily backs Project Matador's four AP1000 reactors; paying for a $70 billion to $90 billion build is a question $62.5 million of cash and an unguaranteed $6.5 billion lease do not answer. ## Sources 1. [American Nuclear Society, Nuclear News: Fermi America, Blue Energy make strides in Texas, 9 October 2026](https://www.ans.org/news/article-8479/fermi-america-blue-energy-make-strides-in-texas/) 2. [Investing.com: Fermi Inc stock hits 52-week low at 3.42 USD, 9 October 2026](https://www.investing.com/news/company-news/fermi-inc-stock-hits-52week-low-at-342-usd-93CH-4941641) 3. [Yahoo Finance Australia: Fermi Inc. (H3V.DE) valuation measures and financial statistics, collected 9 October 2026](https://au.finance.yahoo.com/quote/H3V.DE/key-statistics/) 4. [Datacenter Dynamics: Fermi signs agreement with TensorWave for up to 650MW of data center capacity at Project Matador site, 11 August 2026](https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/fermi-signs-agreement-with-tensorwave-for-up-to-650mw-of-data-center-capacity-at-project-matador-site/) 5. [Federal Register: NRC notice, Fermi America LLC; Project Matador AP1000 Units 1-4; Draft Environmental Impact Statement, published 9 October 2026](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/search?conditions%5Bterm%5D=NRC-2026-0100) 6. [FinanceFeeds: Fermi Delays $6.5B TensorWave Lease Close to Oct. 31, 23 September 2026](https://financefeeds.com/fermi-tensorwave-lease-closing-october-31-deadlines/) 7. [FinanceFeeds: A $6.5 Billion Data Center Lease Still Has No Guarantor, and the Clock Runs to October 31, 25 September 2026](https://financefeeds.com/fermi-tensorwave-lease-guaranty-october-31/) 8. [PR Newswire via Morningstar: Texas Business Court Denies Former CEO's Request for Emergency Relief Against Fermi's Board, 17 September 2026](https://www.morningstar.com/news/pr-newswire/20260917ny51004/texas-business-court-denies-former-ceos-request-for-emergency-relief-against-fermis-board) 9. [Stocktwits via MSN: FRMI stock climbs overnight: Former CEO sues three directors over power grab allegations, 21 September 2026](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/frmi-stock-climbs-overnight-former-ceo-sues-three-directors-over-power-grab-allegations/ar-AA2cIMg5) --- Fermi Inc. hits $3.42, a 52-week low, as an NRC draft backs four reactors its $62.5 million cannot fund — The Inference. Canonical: https://theinference.org/article/fermi-inc-hits-3-42-a-52-week-low-as-an-nrc-draft-backs-four-reactors-its-62-5-million-cannot-fund