GB NUCLEAR | SMRs
Left:
National Nuclear Laboratory sites are being supported to develop a high temperature reactor
● Funding to support technology development and site- specific design
● A close partnership with GBN, which will be ‘ready and able to provide developer capability’. GBN initially intends to establish project development companies, with developer capabilities. ● Support in accessing sites.
Up to 50% co-funding will be available through GBN on commercial terms to support Technology Partners in developing a generic design solution for Final Investment Decision (FID) by 2029. GBN said in the tender that it is looking for a site-
agnostic technology that may be deployed across sites with varying ground conditions and cooling options. Sites will include at minimum all those identified for nuclear deployment in the 2011 National Policy Statement for Nuclear Power Generation. GBN will award a two-stage contract (design and supply) for a Site-Specific Design Solution. The supply stage is conditional on the exercise of an option by GBN and for a first-of-a-kind project in the UK will include manufacture, supply, installation, provision of fuel assemblies and supporting maintenance services up to and including first refuelling outage. Discussing the launch of GBN in his regular planning blog,
Mustafa Latif-Aramesh, partner and parliamentary agent at law firm DBD Pitmans, said: “In stark terms, this will mean that the government is finally putting money where its mouth is for small and advanced nuclear reactors.” He said the government should “throw resources at updating the National Policy Statement for Nuclear” in advance of its 2025 publication target, and explicitly confirm that nuclear projects outside of existing or decommissioned nuclear sites can progress.
More investment in large and advanced units Just days after launching GBN, UK DESNZ confirmed a £170m (US$217m) investment of previously allocated funding for development work on Sizewell C. The investment – part of a £700m (US$894m) investment scheme announced in November 2022 – will help fund Sizewell C’s continuing development so it can reach the point of a final investment decision, including preparing the site for future construction, procuring key components and expanding the workforce.
DESNZ said the investment would “help attract potential
private investment into new nuclear projects”. Energy Security Secretary Grant Shapps said the planned EPR at Sizewell C “represents the bridge between the ongoing construction of Hinkley Point C and our longer-term ambition to provide up to a quarter of the UK’s electricity from homegrown nuclear energy by 2050”. The UK government also announced funding into three
research projects for so-called advanced modular reactors (AMRs), which whose high temperature operation means they can provide heat for hydrogen and other industrial
uses while generating power. They are: ● Up to £22.5m (US$28.7m) to Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation UK in Warrington to further develop the design of a high temperature micro modular reactor.
● Up to £15m (US$19m) to the National Nuclear laboratory in Warrington to accelerate the design of a high temperature reactor, following its success in Japan.
● Up to £16m (US$20.41qm) to the National Nuclear Laboratory in Preston to continue to develop capability to manufacture the coated-particle fuel that is suitable for high temperature reactors.
GBN launch has mixed reaction The UK’s Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) is an ‘arm’s length’ body that describes itself as “the government’s centre of expertise for infrastructure and major projects”. In its Annual Report on Major Projects 2022- 23, published on 20 July, the IPA chose to highlight Great British Nuclear. The IPA held an Opportunity Framing workshop as part of
the establishment of GBN aiming to drive consensus among key stakeholders, accelerate strategic decision making and define actions around GBN’s structure, scope and purpose. The IPA said it identified critical success factors, including the potential funding model and capability building, and aligned key stakeholders to a high-level decision roadmap and claimed that “by investing key stakeholders in the journey early on, the programme has been set up for success, ready to move forward in a joined-up way to achieve its vision”. However, MPs on the Select Committee on Science,
Innovation and Technology were doubtful GBN had the strengths claimed by the IPA.
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