£450 million from the government and investors this week to set up a venture focused on developing small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs), in partnership with US energy company Exelon Generation and investors BNF Resources. The consortium will invest a total of £195 million in the new business, while the government is set to commit another £210 million, which is due to be announced by business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng.
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for the UK to deploy more low-carbon energy than ever before and ensure greater energy independence,” Kwarteng noted. Ministers hope that the new technology under development will be quicker and cheaper in comparison to traditional large-scale nuclear reactors, such as the Hinkley Point C project, which is expected to cost about £23 billion, and is now facing enormous construction risks.
Accordingly, the British manufacturer has vowed to “harness decades of British engineering, design and manufacturing knowhow” to roll out its first SMR, which is expected to have an energy generation capacity of 470MW, sufficient to power 1.3 million homes in the country. Currently, about 20 per cent of United Kingdom’s energy needs are met by 13 nuclear reactors, although a majority of them are due to retire by 2025. This will leave a significant gap in the country’s electricity supplies, risking an increased reliance on gas power stations.
According to Tom Samson, the chief executive of the SMR consortium, the new venture is aimed at delivering “a low cost, deployable, scalable and investable programme” of new nuclear power plants that will help the UK in meeting its net zero emissions target.
