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Collaboration agreement to develop GE Hitachi SMR
- 1 year, 7 months ago (2023-03-27)
- David Flin
GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH), Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Ontario Power Generation (OPG), and Synthos Green Energy (SGE) have signed a technical collaboration agreement to advance global deployment of the GEH BWRX-300 small modular reactor (SMR).
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TVA, OPG, and SGE will invest in the development of the BWRX-300 standard design and detailed design for key components, including reactor pressure vessel and internals. Each contributor has agreed to fund a portion of GEH’s overall cost, estimated at $400 million, and will collectively form a Design Centre Working Group to ensure the standard design is deployable in multiple jurisdictions.
GEH said that the long-term goal is for the BWRX-300 design to be licensed and deployed in Canada, the US, Poland, and elsewhere.
Site preparation is underway for a BWRX-300 at OPG’s Darlington New Nuclear Project site in Clarington, Ontario, with construction expected to be complete by the end of 2028. This will be the first grid-scale SMR in North America.
TVA is preparing a construction permit application for a BWRX-300 at the Clinch River Site near Oak Ridge, Tennessee and exploring additional sites in the TVA service area for potential SMR deployments.
Orlen Synthos Green Energy (OSGE), a joint venture between SGE and PKN Orlen , and its partners have started the pre-licensing process in Poland by submitting an application to the National Atomic Energy Agency for assessment of the BWRX-300. OSGE has initiated a site selection process for its proposed first BWRX-300 and intends to deploy this first unit by the end of this decade.
Jay Wileman, President and CEO of GEH, said: “I applaud the leadership shown by OPG, TVA, and SGE in working together to advance the common design of the BWRX-300. This unprecedented collaboration, which spans three countries, will offer benefits to each of the team members and demonstrates confidence in the role that our SMR technology will play in helping nations meet decarbonisation and energy security goals. Building on our design-to-cost approach, this collaboration will further strengthen the cost competitiveness of the BWRX-300.”