Great Balls of Fire ~ UK to Commit Billions to Build SMRs

• Great Balls of Fire: UK to Commit Billions to Build SMRs
• TerraPower and Centrus to Commercialize US HALEU Production
• X-Energy Sets Plans for 12 SMRs in Washington
• NEI Calls for Action to Block Aggressive Competition From Russia And China

Great Balls of Fire: UK to Commit Billions to Build SMRs

• British nuclear revival to move towards energy independence

UK Energy Secretary Grant Shapps announced this week a massive policy and financial commitment to nuclear energy in the form of funding the construction of six to eight small modular reactors over the next two decades and, overall, to produce 25% of all electricity in the UK from nuclear energy by 2050.

Shapps coined the program’s name as Great British Nuclear (GBN), He said it would drive rapid expansion of nuclear power “at an unprecedented scale and pace.”

He emphasized that the effort would be a government financed “kickstart” for small modular reactor (SMR) technology which could result in billions of pounds of public and private sector investment in these types of nuclear reactor projects.

Also, the government reaffirmed its support for the completion of the Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C projects, which taken together, will supply 3,340 MW of nuclear generated electricity from four EDF EPRs.  When complete the combined output of both power stations will supply about 14% of the electricity needed to power the UK. Without providing details, the UK government’s statement said GBN will consider the potential role of further large gigawatt-scale nuclear power plants in the UK energy mix.

“We’re the first [UK] government for 35 years to put money into nuclear power,” Shapps said, referring to the £700 million the government has paid into the development costs of the Sizewell C project to build two new EPR plants, which is being led by French energy company EDF.

“It has the big advantage of being a replica of Hinkley Point, so we’ll see that replicated at Sizewell and that will help with the speed of development,” Shapps said.

EDF, the developer of Sizewell C, described his comments as “another big vote of confidence” for the massive project.

Shapps added the overall combined nuclear effort will will boost UK energy security, reduce dependence on volatile fossil fuel imports, create more affordable power and grow the economy, with the nuclear industry estimated to generate around £6 billion for the UK economy.

The government’s commitment to nuclear energy appears to finally put to rest the prior public policy fantasy that building nuclear power plants to reduce CO2 emissions from burning fossil fuels can be left to market forces and private investment.

Nuclear Industry Support for GBN

Tom Greatrex, Chief Executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, expressed support for the government’s efforts.

“Focus on the SMR selection will demonstrate the commitment to deployment of innovative technologies and open up new opportunities for the UK industrial supply chain here and abroad. There a range of sites and communities across the country ready to host SMR technology, alongside the large scale nuclear capacity we will also need.

Britain has an important leadership role in the global nuclear industry, and nowhere more so than in our determination to drive Russia out of the nuclear fuel markets. The government’s Nuclear Fuel Fund will bolster those world-class capabilities that make us uniquely placed to help our allies replace Russian supplies with Western nuclear fuel.”

SMR Competition

Funds will be provided to SMR developers via a competition for them. Companies can register their interest with GBN to participate in a competition to secure funding support to develop their products. This could result in billions of pounds of public and private sector investment in small modular reactor (SMR) projects in the UK.

It will demonstrate the government delivering on its priorities to partner with the nuclear industry and jointly develop the future of nuclear technologies. As part of the GBN competition launch the government also announced a grant funding package totaling up to £157 million.

The two leading SMR developers in the UK are Rolls-Royce which is developing a mid-range 470 MW PWR and GE-Hitachi with its 300 MW BWRX-300 SMR. Other likely competitors are X-Energy which has already announced it will compete for the GBN funds with its advanced HTGR design and NuScale with a 77 MWe PWR.

This is the second time the UK government has announced an SMR competition. In December 2017 the British government said in an SMR competition proposal it would provide up to 56 million pounds ($75 million) of funding for research and development for small nuclear reactors.

The funding level was intended to be the first part of a 250 million pounds promised to support the industry in the government’s long delayed SMR competition. The government never completed the “competition,” but subsequently it issued other funding commitments for SMRs.

In November 2021 an industry consortium led by Rolls-Royce, the British government, announced it would jointly pump £405M (USD$546M) into the development of a fleet of mid-range nuclear reactors (440 MW PWRs) as part of a new push into nuclear power designed to help the government meet its net zero carbon targets. (Rolls Royce press release)

Since then Rolls-Royce has pointedly reminded the UK government that it is the home team when it comes to SMRs and that its proposed fleet of 16 470 MW PWRs will, due to their geographic scope, produce thousands of construction and supply chain jobs,  add to grid resilience, and be an essential element of the nation’s energy security in the second half of this century.

The firm’s competitors obviously think the market is bigger than just the proposed Rolls-Royce fleet and will also tout their localization programs related to supply chains and jobs. The UK government apparently agrees about the size of the market based on its spread of initial funding awards under the GBN program so buckle up.

GBN Funding Commitments

Of the £157 million initial allocation for the SMR competition, up to £77.1 million of funding  will be available for companies to accelerate advanced nuclear business development in the UK and support advanced nuclear designs to enter UK regulation, maximizing the chance of small and advanced modular reactors.

Up to £58 million funding will be allocated for the further development and design of a type of advanced modular reactor (AMR) and next generation fuel. AMRs operate at a higher temperature than SMRs and as a result they could provide high temperature heat for hydrogen and other industrial uses alongside nuclear power.

The winning projects of this latest phase of funding are:

Up to £22.5 million to Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation UK in Warrington to further develop the design of a high temperature micro modular reactor, a type of AMR suited to UK industrial demands including hydrogen and sustainable aviation fuel production

Up to £15 million to National Nuclear laboratory in Warrington to accelerate the design of a high temperature reactor, following its success in Japan

Up to £16 million to National Nuclear Laboratory in Preston to continue to develop sovereign coated particle fuel capability, a type of robust advanced fuel which is suitable for high temperature reactors

A further £22.3 million from the Nuclear Fuel Fund will enable eight projects to develop new fuel production and manufacturing capabilities in the UK, driving up energy security and supporting the global move away from Russian fuel. Winning projects include:

Over £10.5 million to Westinghouse Springfields nuclear fuel plant in Preston to manufacture more innovative types of nuclear fuel for customers both in the UK and for international markets.

Over £9.5 million to Urenco UK in Capenhurst Chester, an international supplier of nuclear materials, to enrich uranium to higher levels, including LEU+ and high assay low enriched uranium (HALEU).

LEU+ will allow for current reactors and SMRs to run for longer between refueling outages, improving reactor efficiency and economics both in the UK and abroad. HALEU development will ensure that the UK remains at the forefront of fuel development for future advanced reactors

Over £1 million has also been awarded to Nuclear Transport Solutions, a subsidiary of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, to develop transport solutions to facilitate a supply chain for HALEU in the UK and internationally.

Over £1.2 million to support MoltexFLEX, a UK molten salt reactor developer based in the North West, to build and operate rigs for the development of molten salt fuel. Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs) are an AMR type that use a molten salt as a coolant and fuel, leading to intrinsic safety compared with conventional fuels.

A knowledge sharing initiative, led by expert nuclear industry advisers Arup Ove, aimed at facilitating the sharing of valuable expertise to reduce the time, risk, and cost of AMR R&D program delivery.

About GBN

GBN, an arms-length body, will initially be led by Simon Bowen and Gwen Parry-Jones, interim Chair and CEO. The organizational model is a quasi government corporation that will manage the enormous commitments of funding needed to meet its ambitious objectives. Other countries probably should take note because this kind of public-private partnership makes a lot of sense.

Following the launch of the SMR selection process, once the initial stage is complete, GBN will down-select those technologies which have met the criteria, and then enter into detailed discussions with those companies as part of an Invitation to Negotiate phase. The initial down-select will take place in the Fall of 2023.

Further details about competitions

•   About the Great British Nuclear and the SMR competition
• About the Future Nuclear Enabling Fund
• About the Advanced Modular Reactors Demonstration Program
• About the 8 projects receiving £22.3 million from the Nuclear Fuel Fund to develop fuel production and manufacturing capabilities

& & &

TerraPower and Centrus to Commercialize US HALEU Production

TerraPower and Centrus Energy Corp. (NYSE American: LEU) announced a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) to significantly expand their collaboration aimed at establishing commercial-scale, domestic production capabilities for high-assay, low-enriched uranium (HALEU) to supply TerraPower’s first-of-a-kind Natrium reactor and energy storage system.

Centrus and TerraPower will collaborate to ensure the Natrium demonstration reactor has access to HALEU at the milestones necessary to meet the project’s 2030 operation date. The two companies will establish a cost-competitive and timely source of enrichment capacity in the United States at Centrus’ Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)-licensed HALEU production facility.

TerraPower earlier this year pushed back the commercialization dates for its Natrium reactor by two years from 2028 due to projected shortfalls in supplies of HALEU fuel. The project is funded through a cost-shared program funded under the Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP). DOE has only recently begun the procurement process for kickstarting HALEU fuels despite a $700 million appropriation last year by Congress for this purpose.

TerraPower and Centrus have been working together since 2021 when they entered into a contract for services to help expedite the commercialization of domestic enrichment technology at Centrus’ Piketon, Ohio, facility.

“TerraPower is committed to a successful and timely delivery of the Natrium demonstration reactor,” said Chris Levesque, TerraPower president and CEO.

“This expanded collaboration with Centrus represents TerraPower’s commitment to reinvigorating the domestic supply chain as we bring advanced reactors to market within the decade. This MOU will ensure we can fuel these reactors for decades to come.”

“Centrus is ready to pioneer U.S. HALEU production and to meet the needs of TerraPower in bringing their advanced reactor to market,” said Daniel B. Poneman, Centrus President and CEO.

“American HALEU production is vital for deploying U.S.-designed advanced nuclear reactors. Establishing the domestic HALEU supply chain is critical for our energy independence.”

In February 2023, Centrus completed the operational readiness review for its HALEU production facility and in June 2023 received permission from the NRC to begin operation. As part of this MOU, Centrus will work toward scaling up production capacity with additional centrifuge cascades to meet TerraPower’s fuel requirements.

TerraPower said in its press statement the Natrium reactor “is the only advanced reactor design that can provide stability to the grid with baseload output while seamlessly boosting energy production to meet variable power needs.”

The Natrium technology is a 345 MW sodium-cooled fast reactor coupled with a molten salt-based integrated energy storage system that can boost power output to 500 MW for more than five and a half hours to serve peak demand; making it the ideal technology to pair with energy grids that have high penetrations of renewable resources.

Natrium HALEU Fuel Fabrication Plant

In October 2022 Global Nuclear Fuel–Americas (GNF-A), a GE-led joint venture, and TerraPower announced an agreement to build the Natrium Fuel Facility at the site of GNF-A’s existing plant site near Wilmington, NC. The Natrium Fuel Facility would utilize high-assay, low-enriched uranium (HALEU).

The Natrium Fuel Facility will be jointly funded by TerraPower and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) through the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP), which is intended to speed the demonstration of advanced reactors through cost-shared partnerships with U.S. industry. The facility represents an investment of more than $200 million. Construction on the Natrium Fuel Facility is anticipated to begin in 2023.

& & &

X-Energy Sets Plans for 12 SMRs in Washington

• The firm is considering a site next to Energy Northwest’s Columbia nuclear power station

(NucNet) Power company Energy Northwest and advanced small modular reactor (SMR) developer X-energy have signed an agreement for a nuclear power station consisting of up to 12 80 MW Xe-100 advanced SMRs in central Washington state. The facility would be capable of generating up to a total of 960 MW of electricity with the first module scheduled to be online by 2030.

Under the agreement with Rockville, MD, based X-energy, the Xe-100 project is expected to be developed at a site controlled by Energy Northwest next to the Columbia plant.

Energy Northwest and X-energy have been discussing plans for an Xe-100 facility in central Washington since 2020 as part of the cost-shared Department of Energy Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP). The agreement defines and details the scope, location, and schedule for commercial development.

Each Xe-100 module can provide 80 MW of full-time electricity or 200 MW of high-temperature steam. The modular design is road-shippable and intended to drive scalability, accelerate construction timelines and create more predictable and manageable construction costs.

The Xe-100 can power a broad range of applications through its high-temperature steam output. It could be used by large regional electricity providers and industry.

X-Energy’s Plans for DOW Chemical Manufacturing Site

Separately, in May, US chemicals company Dow and X-energy announced they had chosen Dow’s UCC Seadrift Operations manufacturing site in Texas for a proposed Xe-100 project. The project is focused on providing the Seadrift site with power and steam as existing power generation is retired.

Seadrift, on the Gulf of Mexico coast and about 150 miles (240 km) from Houston, is the second largest Dow facility in Texas, spanning about 4,700 acres (1,900 hectares) and employing more than 1,200 people.

Dow and X-energy said they will now prepare and submit a construction permit application to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Construction on the four-reactor project is expected to begin in 2026 and to be completed by the end of this decade.

Each Xe-100 module can provide 80 MW of full-time electricity or 200 megawatts of high-temperature steam. X-energy’s innovative and simplified modular design is road-shippable and intended to drive scalability, accelerate construction timelines and create more predictable and manageable construction costs.

The Xe-100 high-temperature gas-cooled reactor technology can power a broad range of applications through its high-temperature steam output that can address the needs of large regional electricity providers as well as industrial manufacturing systems.

Energy Northwest owns or operates power facilities throughout the Northwest region of the US, including the single-unit Columbia nuclear power station in Richland, which is the only commercial nuclear energy facility in the region.

& & &

NEI Calls for Action to Block Aggressive Competition From Russia And China

• It is ‘national security imperative’ to speed up  deployment of innovative US reactor technologies

(NucNet) NEI president Maria Korsnick told Congress last week told the the House Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security that an all out effort is needed to revive the US nuclear industry and head off “aggressive” competition from Russia and China. (Full text of testimony PDF file)

She testified that priorities for the the US are that it needs to modernize regulatory processes, establish a secure domestic fuel supply, overcome financing challenges and support nuclear exports..

Korsnick told the committee it is imperative that the US remains a leader in the nuclear field, despite growing competition from Russian and Chinese firms that are aided by their state ownership. Their central political control and coordinated official sponsorship, including financing, results in a market advantage for Russian and Chinese companies because they are effectively supported as extensions of state power.

“China and Russia are aggressively broadening their geopolitical leverage with nuclear technology export sales,” Korsnick said.

“For US companies to succeed abroad, international customers expect US technologies to be deployed here at home. It is thus a national security imperative to accelerate domestic and international deployments of innovative US technologies.”

In other words, for US nuclear energy companies to succeed internationally they must first establish credibility by dominating their own home market, something that requires government assistance.

Korsnick described the proposed changes as “vitally important to achieving US energy independence, ensuring national security, and meeting carbon reduction goals” and said that the US could triple its output of nuclear energy by 2050 if the legislation was passed.

“This is a unique and opportune time to focus on nuclear energy,” she said.

“Demand for nuclear energy in the US and globally is projected to surge, and the industry is poised to play a pivotal role in meeting the nation’s energy security and carbon reduction goals via the long-term operation of its existing fleet of large light-water reactors and deployment of new, advanced plants.

Reforms Needed In Six Key Areas

She told the committee that reforms are needed in six key areas to make conditions more favorable for US companies.

• Modernize Nuclear Regulatory Commission processes.

More streamlined oversight procedures are needed, including a shift towards the most significant safety issues in the industry and away from minor operational aspects.

• Establish a secure, reliable, domestic fuel supply.

The US commercial industry is committed to phasing out Russian fuel imports, but federal support is essential to the industry establishing a secure, competitive supply of conversion and enrichment in the US.

• Overcome financing obstacles to domestic plant development.

Federal tax incentives are a “game-changer” for existing plants and new plant deployment. Additional federal support is necessary to meaningfully accelerate domestic deployments.

• Support for US companies in the global nuclear market.

The US should make the promotion of US-based nuclear energy firms abroad part of foreign policy and global economic strategy. Korsnick called for the streamlining of the “cumbersome” Part 810 process, which governs which kinds of nuclear technology can be exported abroad.

• Reauthorize the Price-Anderson Act.

Congressional approval is needed for this act, which creates a legal framework for liability that proponents claim is necessary for the industry’s growth. It governs liability-related issues for all non-military nuclear facilities constructed in the US before 2026. The Act was first passed in 1957 and has since been renewed several times.

• Revise the approach to used fuel management.

Korsnick called for federal action to unify strategies and practices regarding fuel storage and recycling research.

Korsnick added that there are than a dozen bills are under discussion that would support current and future nuclear plants by enhancing licensing efficiency, streamlining application review schedules, reducing regulatory costs, providing support for a domestic fuel supply, and bolstering export opportunities.

Other Testimony at the Hearing

Dan Dorman, Executive Director of Operations, NRC (PDF file)

Michael Goff, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Nuclear Energy, DOE (PDF file)

Jeffrey S. Merrifield, Chairman, Advanced Nuclear Working Group, U.S. Nuclear Industry Council (PDF file)

Jackie Toth, Deputy Director, Good Energy Collective (PDF file)

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