Engineering news
US-based Westinghouse Electric Company wants to partner with the government to deploy a fleet of small modular reactors (SMR) in the UK.
The unsolicited proposal outlines a “shared design and development model” under which Westinghouse would contribute its small modular reactor conceptual design and then partner with UK government and industry to complete, license and deploy the design. The SMR would be based on its current AP1000 pressurised water reactor.
Westinghouse put forward its SMR for technology readiness assessment as part of a Department of Energy and Climate Change feasibility study in 2014. The results of that work indicated that SMRs were potentially deployable within a 10 year timeframe, but that further detailed technical analysis of specific designs would be required.
A phase two assessment of technical and economic factors underpinning SMR deployment began last month, and Westinghouse intends to be part of those discussions.
Jeff Benjamin, senior vice-president, Westinghouse New Plants and Major Projects, said: “The UK has a long and distinguished record in nuclear energy that dates back to construction of the Calder Hall plant almost 60 years ago. We are proposing a strategy that would put the UK at the forefront of SMR development, advancing its standing in nuclear energy innovation and creating significant economic opportunities through leadership in the global market.
“Our proposal is designed to fully engage UK industry and spur new manufacturing activity that would create numerous good jobs in the UK.”
Westinghouse’s SMR design is a 225MWe integral pressurised water reactor with all primary components located inside the reactor vessel. In addition to its design, Westinghouse would bring to the partnership the volumes of testing and analysis upon which its SMR is based – a resource that establishes a clear, credible path to successful deployment of the technology in the UK and beyond, it said.
As proposed, the partnership would be structured as a UK-based enterprise jointly owned by Westinghouse, the UK government and UK industry. By actively involving UK industry in the design and deployment of small modular reactors, this approach would support the UK government’s program goals for leadership in SMR development. Westinghouse is in dialogue with a number of UK companies who have offered support for the concept.