By Susanna Twidale
LONDON (Reuters) -Britain on Tuesday opened a competition to develop small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs), and is aiming to see them operating in the country by the early 2030's, according to energy security minister Grant Shapps.
Britain is seeking increase its nuclear power capacity to 24 gigawatts (GW) by 2050 as part of efforts to meet climate targets and boost energy security. That would meet around a quarter of projected electricity demand, compared with 14% today.
Large new nuclear projects with high upfront costs have struggled to attract financing and the government hopes some older plants could be replaced by a fleet of SMRs which can be made in factories, with lower costs and faster construction.
From Tuesday, companies can register their interest in the government's SMR competition. The new Great British Nuclear body, also launched on Tuesday, will select technologies that have met the criteria later this year.
"I would expect to see them (the projects) in the 2030s, hopefully the early 2030s," Shapps told journalists.
Selected companies will start discussions as part of an Invitation to Negotiate phase, with a final investment decision to be taken in 2029, Shapps said.
The SMR competition was first announced alongside the budget in March.
In 2021 the government committed 210 million pounds $274.91 million) to Rolls-Royce (LON:RR) for its 500-million pound SMR programme which could see the company open factories to build the reactors in Britain.
"As the only SMR technology in the UK regulatory process, we are at least 18 months ahead of any competitor and are ready to work with the Government at pace to bolster the country’s energy security," said Rolls-Royce SMR Chief Executive Chris Cholerton.
Before new nuclear reactors can be deployed they must get approval from Britain's Office for Nuclear Regulation, a process that has typically taken 4-5 years for large scale reactor.
Shapps said Rolls-Royce has a well advanced program but it is important to make sure the right technologies are chosen.
Other SMR developers include GE Hitachi, Nuscale and X-energy and Westinghouse.
Shapps said the competition could unlock up to 20 billion pounds of funding but said there was no commitment for that amount to be spent.
Britain announced a previous competition for SMRs in 2015 which ultimately closed in 2017 without moving beyond the initial, information-gathering first stage.
Along with SMRs the government said it is committed to large-scale new projects, such as EDF (EPA:EDF)'s Hinkley Point C, the first new plant in more than 20 years, and Sizewell C in which the government has invested around 700 million pounds, becoming a 50% shareholder in the development phase.
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