Billionaires backing Rolls-Royce reactors bet on atomic resurgence

ishwarkimmins1 day ago

Decision to support the French oil family of millionaires Rolls-Royce Mini Nuclear Power Plant Fleet Plan According to their investment adviser, is part of a series of investments premised on the nuclear renaissance.

Shaun Benson, director of BNF Capital, a London-based investment firm owned by members of the Perodo family, said recent investments have focused on uranium. Investing in Rolls-Royce “.

“We believe nuclear power is needed as part of the net zero-carbon goal that everyone wants to achieve,” added Benson, who has advised his family on a multi-billion dollar office portfolio.

The Perodo family, whose estimated £ 3.9 billion was built on oil and gas investments, was one of two private supporters of the British aero engine group’s plans to build a small modular reactor last week. It has surfaced. This funding helped unleash support from the UK Government for the initiative. This is part of a new push for nuclear power designed to help the country achieve its net zero-carbon goal.

Perenco, a group of oil and gas that is the family’s main asset, was founded by the late Hubert Perrodo, a descendant of Breton’s fishermen who set up several wine farms in Bordeaux. Perenco’s business today spans projects in West Africa, Latin America and Asia. An important producer in the North Sea of ​​the United Kingdom, this group is run separately by the family.

Benson said the decision to support the Rolls-Royce initiative was not driven by a move to diversify from fossil fuels. Two years ago, BNF Capital first approached the UK group. The British Group’s reactors power the Royal Navy’s nuclear submarine fleet. Benson said he is considering investing in other SMR technologies because the Rolls-Royce design uses existing technology in the form of pressurized water reactors found in large power plants. , Was particularly attractive. Another option, BNF resources, manages investment in RRSMR.

“It’s in [existing technology] Together more efficiently in different ways. .. .. We see it as an investment that stands up on its own. It has ESG Angle, “Benson said.

Other investments include lithium and nickel, the commodities needed to manufacture electric vehicles. Benson said there wasn’t enough capital invested in “these mines that allow commodities to keep up with demand,” and prices are expected to continue to rise to encourage production.

BNF Capital seeded Two fund vehicles It operates on the River Tees Uranium Fund and the River Tees Important Resources Fund, both of which Benson calls “energy transition products.” The uranium fund’s assets under management are approximately $ 280 million, an increase of approximately 200% year-to-date.

Separately, Benson said he was considering the possibility of investing in carbon capture and technology, which he said would be “helpful in the medium term before the nuclear launch in earnest.”

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