Small scale nuclear to get green light this week

Nuclear is a slow-moving game but signs of progress are emerging. The problems of intermittent wind and solar power are only going to increase in step with their share of the UK power supply, as the government has caved in to the ’emissions’ obsessions of the climate lobby.
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Reactor designer Rolls-Royce will announce that a consortium of investors will back plans for a new smaller nuclear reactor project, reports BBC News.

As part of its 10 point green energy plan, the government has already announced it would provide £210m in funding if that could be matched by private capital.

An announcement that money has been raised could come as soon as Tuesday.

Around 21% of Britain’s electricity supply is provided by nuclear power.

The plan is thought to include the construction of an initial four Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) based on the technology used in nuclear powered submarines.

These reactors will be capable of generating nearly 500 megawatts of power – three times as much as much as most existing nuclear submarine reactors but more than six times less than the 3.2 gigawatts that the large plant under construction at Hinkley Point will deliver. Hinkley is expected to produce enough power to supply 6 million homes.

However, at an expected ultimate cost of around £2bn each, they should cost less than a tenth of the £20bn each of Hinkley and an anticipated, but not yet approved, sister plant at Sizewell in Suffolk.

Industry sources say they hope that these SMRs would be operational within a decade.

Advocates of SMRs say their smaller size means they can be built in a controlled factory setting and installed module by module, reducing risk and cost.

Full report here.