Rolls-royce secures investment to start developing fleet of mini nuclear reactors
BRITAIN has taken a crucial step towards creating a fleet of mini reactors that would reduce reliance on Chinese money and nuclear technology, after Rolls-royce secured investment to build the world’s first production line.
A consortium led by the FTSE 100 engineer has secured at least £210m needed to unlock a matching amount of taxpayer funding which will make it the first “small modular reactors” (SMR) developer to submit its designs to regulators.
It is understood heavyweight financial investors specialising in energy are now thrashing out the final details of their backing to drive work on the socalled “mini nuke” power plants.
State support for SMRS – which each generate about 450 megawatts, about a seventh of the output of conventional nuclear power stations – was revealed in the Prime Minister’s 10-point plan for a green industrial revolution last year.
New nuclear has been described as vital in ensuring the Government achieves its net-zero emissions target by 2050, and as a means of helping the Prime Minister meet his levelling-up agenda.
It comes as the Government prepares curbs on Chinese involvement in critical infrastructure as relations between London and Beijing deteriorate.
China General Nuclear is a minority investor Hinkley, and is lined up as backer for other future nuclear plants in the UK. This combined with the cost of Hinkley, which has spiralled from £16bn to £23bn, has prompted the Government to reassess the viability of SMRS.
Rolls believes the project could create 40,000 new jobs in regions such as the Midlands and the North of England by 2050 with plans to install at least 16 plants at existing and former nuclear sites.
Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, said: “This is very positive news for the UK nuclear industry. SMRS must play a critical role in our clean energy transition and can open new export markets worth billions of pounds.
“To realise this potential, however, the Government needs to establish a siting and policy framework by next year to enable the deployment of a fleet of SMRS and capture the promise of a net-zero future.”
Although officials are engaging with other businesses on SMRS, one Whitehall source described the Rolls-led consortium as “by far the most advanced”. The UK SMR Consortium also includes the National Nuclear Laboratory and Laing O’rourke, the construction firm.
Sites being targeted for SMRS, which each take up the space equal to about two football pitches, are understood to include disused nuclear sites around the country currently in the care of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.
The consortium estimates it will cost £2bn to get to the stage where it can start constructing the first SMR. Getting the first five operating is expected to cost £2.2bn apiece, with the first hoped to be running in the early 2030.
Proving SMRS as practical sources of emissions free energy will not only be key to the UK’S net-zero target, but could also be a huge money spinner if Britain can perfect the technology first. The global market for SMRS has been estimated as £450bn.
Rolls has been hammered by the pandemic as demand for its jet engines for airliners collapsed in the face of travel restrictions. Analysts expect its interim results tomorrow to warn that Rolls’s March forecasts of a recovery of the jet engine market were overly optimistic.
♦ Rolls-royce is in advanced talks to sell Bergen Engines to British defence contractor Langley, Bloomberg reported, after an earlier transaction was blocked by Norway on security grounds.