Rolls-Royce, the British luxury passenger car maker, will provide approximately $ 600 million in public and private funding to develop small modular nuclear reactors.
A consortium of private investors and the UK government has supported Rolls-Royce to develop small nuclear reactors for cleaner energy. Currently, about 16% of the UK's electricity comes from a nuclear power plant.
British engineering group Rolls-Royce has announced the creation of a new venture - Rolls-Royce SMR Limited - to deploy and commercialize its small modular reactor (SMR) technology. The announcement follows the receipt of £ 210 million ($ 285 million) in funding from the UK government, as well as over £ 250 million in private investment.
“The SMR program is one way Rolls-Royce is meeting the UK's need to develop innovative ways to tackle the global threat of climate change,” said Rolls-Royce CEO Warren East. “With Rolls-Royce SMR technology, we have developed a clean energy solution that can provide cost competitive and scalable zero-energy power for applications ranging from grid and industrial power generation to hydrogen and synthetic fuels. 40,000 jobs from UK deployment and exports have boosted growth. ”
The UK SMR consortium, led by Rolls-Royce, is aiming to build 16 SMRs based on small pressurized water reactors, each with a generating capacity of 470 MW. The consortium, which includes Assystem, Atkins, BAM Nuttall, Jacobs, Laing O 'Rourke, the National Nuclear Laboratory, Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Center (Nuclear AMRC) and TWI, aims to complete its first unit in the early 2030s.
Rolls-Royce's small modular reactors will consist of parts that can be assembled in factories and then delivered to their destination, making construction much easier and faster.
