UK COMPETITION UPDATE | SMRs & ADVANCED REACTORS
Above: Westinghouse has submitted its AP300 design for Generic Design Assessment in response to the Great British Nuclear SMR plans
ONR’s GDA Step 2 statement said: “Based upon
assessment to date ONR has not identified any significant issues that may prevent ONR from issuing a Design Assessment Confirmation (DAC).” Rolls Royce SMR argues that its progress through the assessment by the regulators confirms its position as significantly ahead of any other SMR design in Europe. Rolls-Royce SMR has further announced plans to develop a prototype manufacturing and test facility for its SMR technology at the University of Sheffield. The Rolls Royce SMR application followed on from a new agreement recently signed with GSE Solutions to develop a power station simulator for its SMR designs. The simulator that will emerge from the £1.2m (US$1.5m) deal will play a key role in Rolls-Royce SMR’s programme to develop, verify and validate the performance and control systems of its design. In a statement David Dodd, Rolls-Royce SMR Engineering
Director, said: “Commissioning a simulation and test platform is another stride towards deploying the first Rolls- Royce SMR power plant. The work with GSE is part of our ‘digital-first’ methodology.”
Advancing the UK’s SMR assessment Last October the government revealed that six companies had been selected to advance to the next phase of SMR competition and were invited to bid for government contracts due to be awarded shortly. The companies accepted were EDF, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy International LLC, Holtec Britain Limited, NuScale Power, Rolls Royce SMR and Westinghouse Electric Company UK Limited. The previous administration had a stated ambition is for
up to a quarter of all UK electricity to come from nuclear power by 2050 with operational SMR technology anticipated to be in place by the mid-2030s. The next stage of the process will be launched as soon
as possible in which successful companies will be able to bid for government contracts. The ambition is to announce which of the six companies the government will support, with contracts expected to be awarded to be ready to enable a Final Investment Decision (FID) by 2029. This will entail funding to support technology development and site- specific design. GE Hitachi’s BWRX-300 design has also begun the GDA
programme which the UK’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has concluded can take approximately four
years. GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy submitted its initial tender response as part of the GBN SMR programme last October. The company is also working with Ontario Power Generation developing the first unit at the Darlington NPP site near Toronto in Canada. Early site preparation work has been completed and construction is expected to start in early 2025 with commercial operation anticipated to commence by 2029. A total of four of the 300 MW units are planned for Darlington. Commenting Andy Champ, GEH UK Country Leader, said:
“We are confident that our SMR represents the lowest risk and highest reward choice for Great British Nuclear. We look forward to the outcome of the competition and the opportunity to play a pivotal role in helping to deliver not just Great British Nuclear’s ambitions, but also the new Government’s mission to make the UK a green energy superpower.” As part of this strategy GEH has said it is committed to developing a robust UK supply chain. More recently, in January 2024 GEH received a £33.6m (US$43m) Future Nuclear Enabling Fund (FNEF) grant from the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ). In conjunction with the awarding of this grant, GEH entered the GDA process. In July, GEH followed this by submitting a tender response and providing documentation in support of its BWRX-300 SMR as part of the GBN competition. At the same time, Holtec Britain also submitted
documentation in the UK in support of its SMR-300 design as part of its tender for the SMR competition. Holtec, which like GEH and Rolls Royce SMR is using a 300 MWe design, in this case a PWR, argues that its technology is consistent with the existing UK nuclear ecosystem and will facilitate modular construction of components in UK factories, which will be shipped to site for final assembly. However, they also state that the SMR-300 can use an air-cooling system to deliver heat and power in arid environments around the world. Holtec says that as part of its SMR plans it is strengthened by the collaboration with partners, including Hyundai Engineering & Construction, Balfour Beatty, and Mott MacDonald, signing a new Memorandum of Understanding this spring. The company is also working to build its first two SMRs
at the Palisades Nuclear Generating Station in Michigan by 2030. Holtec is also considering deployment of the SMR-300 at its Oyster Creek site on Barnegat Bay in New Jersey as part of the Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub (MACH2).
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