The UK’s proposed small modular reactor (SMR) programme has entered the negotiation phase, with four companies remaining in contention to provide SMR technology: GE Hitachi, Holtec, Rolls-Royce SMR, and Westinghouse. GE Hitachi is offering its BWRX-300, a boiling water reactor, while Holtec, Rolls-Royce, and Westinghouse are proposing various pressurised water reactors ranging from 300 MWe to 470 MWe. Initially, six companies were shortlisted by Great British Nuclear (GBN), the body overseeing the process, but EDF and NuScale have since been eliminated.
The remaining companies will now enter formal negotiations with GBN. Each of the four companies has advanced designs based on existing nuclear technologies, with a focus on modular production to speed up construction. The aim is to select two or three companies by the end of 2024 to co-fund their technologies through to completion, with an anticipated final investment decision (FID) in 2029.
Interested in Power Plants?
Enerdata has developed a market research service to screen, monitor and analyse the development of power generation assets.
Power Plant Tracker offers an interactive database and a powerful search engine covering power plants worldwide – including both installed and planned capacities for renewables and fossil fuels.