From The Telegraph, July 30:
Engineering giant becomes first to advance to final stage of regulatory approval
Rolls-Royce has cleared a key hurdle in the race to build Britain’s first mini-nuclear power plant, as competition across Europe ramps up.
On Tuesday, the FTSE 100 engineering giant became the first developer to advance a small modular reactor (SMR) design to the final stage of examination by UK regulators.
Helena Perry, director of safety and regulatory affairs at Rolls-Royce SMR, said the latest approval was “the most important milestone to date in advancing deployment of Rolls-Royce SMRs in the UK”.
She added: “We have built fantastic momentum and the team will move directly into step three of this rigorous independent assessment of our technology – ideally positioning us to deliver low-carbon nuclear power and support the UK’s transition to net zero.”
The Derby-based company wants to build a new generation of lower-cost power plants, made from modular parts that would be produced in factories and then assembled on site.
SMRs would each generate 470 megawatts of electricity and cost between £2bn and £3bn initially. Rolls-Royce aims to bring that number down gradually through economies of scale.
The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) said Rolls has now been cleared to move into the third and final stage of the UK’s generic design assessment.
That process is expected to conclude by the end of 2026, after which Rolls will be able to apply for site-specific approval to build its first SMR.
A summary assessment published by the ONR on Tuesday said that the regulator has “not identified any fundamental safety, security or safeguards shortfalls that could prevent permissioning the construction of a power station based on the generic Rolls-Royce SMR design”....
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