World Nuclear News

UK Sizewell C reports project progress to parliament

Friday, 31 January 2025

The Sizewell C nuclear power plant project in the UK is "on time and on budget" and is "the best prepared nuclear project in modern nuclear history", MPs have been told in the first annual progress update on the project.

The planned Sizewell C plant (Image: EDF Energy)

The update delivered to MPs by Sizewell C - majority owned by the government - outlines the progress made since the project received its Development Consent Order (DCO) one year ago. It was delivered by Julia Pyke and Nigel Cann, Sizewell C's joint managing directors, at the beginning of Nuclear Week in Parliament.

The MPs also heard that independent due diligence commissioned for the HSBC bank by consultancy firm Enco praised the project's progress, stating that "Sizewell C is likely the best prepared nuclear project in modern nuclear history".

The independent assessment concluded: "The Sizewell C project has high chances of avoiding pitfalls that led to a significant schedule and cost overruns on many nuclear projects, including those with EPR reactor models."

The EDF-led plan is for Sizewell C to feature two EPRs producing 3.2 GW of electricity, enough to power the equivalent of around six million homes for at least 60 years. It would be a similar design to the two-unit plant being built at Hinkley Point C in Somerset, with the aim of building it more quickly and at lower cost as a result of the experience gained from what is the first new nuclear construction project in the UK for about three decades.

The update noted the project is demonstrating the "game-changing benefits" of replicating Hinkley Point C's reactor design, with GBP1 billion (USD1.2 billion) of cost savings identified so far through innovation and replication.

MPs were told that contracts worth GBP2.5 billion have already been agreed with 290 suppliers across the UK. The project will eventually support over 70,000 jobs across the UK, and generate income for over 2000 UK-based suppliers, with 90% of the supply chain benefits felt in the UK. 1000 people are now employed on site, with a 60% female executive team. Sizewell C's apprenticeship recruitment has been 50% female since the programme began in 2021. The workforce is currently over 40% female. The project will generate around GBP2.92 of economic value for every GBP1 invested during construction and will create over GBP100 billion of value for the UK over the lifecycle of the project.

Commenting on the update, Pyke and Cann said: "Sizewell C is already a massive driver of growth in the UK, and the team has made extraordinary progress in the year since we received permission to begin construction.

"Sizewell C is on time and on budget and has a stable cost base. That's in no small part because we're using exactly the same reactor design as Hinkley Point C, which means we've benefitted from the research and innovation already done there.

"Sizewell C is the most important energy project that the UK is likely to undertake in the next two decades, and its benefits will be felt in every constituency across the country."

The project received an additional GBP2.7 billion in funding from the government in the 2024 Budget and is due to receive its Final Investment Decision in the upcoming Spending Review.

Kairos Power fabricates and installs test unit reactor vessel

Friday, 31 January 2025

The central component for the second-iteration test unit for Kairos Power's Hermes reactor is the first reactor vessel to be fabricated in-house at Kairos Power’s Manufacturing Development Campus in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

(Image: Kairos Power)

Kairos is following an iterative approach for the development of its Fluoride Salt-Cooled High-Temperature Reactor (KP-FHR) technology. The non-power Engineering Test Unit 2 (ETU 2.0) follows ETU 1.0, a full-scale, electrically heated prototype of the Hermes reactor which carried out more than 2000 hours of pumped salt operations demonstrating the design and integration of key systems, as well as exercising the supply chain and establish new capabilities, including the production of the high-purity fluoride-lithium-beryllium (FLiBe) salt coolant.

ETU 1.0 completed operations in mid-2024. ETU 2.0 will demonstrate modular construction methods: as part of the project the company is ramping up output of ASME U-stamped pressure vessels, producing specialised reactor components, and gaining proficiency in modular construction methods.

The dedicated shop for KP-FHR vessel production at Albuquerque includes large-scale plate-rolling, cutting, automated welding and machining capabilities. (Image: Kairos Power)

Kairos Power has established a dedicated shop in its Albuquerque facility for KP-FHR vessel production. Its in-house engineering, procurement, and manufacturing teams collaborated closely in the project to deliver the ETU 2.0 reactor vessel, enabling key learnings that will carry forward to future iterations, the company said. The company is minimising outsourced production of specialised components under its vertical integration strategy, aiming for 80% of ETU 2.0 costs to derive from raw materials or commercial off-the-shelf parts which it says gives better control over product cost, quality, and schedule.

Kairos Power co-founder and CEO Mike Laufer described the completion of the ETU 2.0 vessel as a "monumental achievement" for the company, illustrating the synergy between its rapid iterative development approach and vertical integration strategy. "We are systematically building the capabilities and know-how to self-produce major reactor components over multiple iterations - an investment that will ultimately lower costs for the commercial fleet," he said.

(Image: Kairos Power)

The KP-FHR is one of five technologies selected in 2020 to receive federal funding for risk reduction projects under the US Department of Energy's Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, with the department investing up to USD303 million in the Hermes reactor project. The DOE ETU 2.0 reactor vessel is a contract milestone under that investment agreement.

ETU 2.0 will be followed by a third non-nuclear iteration, ETU 3.0, which will be built adjacent to the site in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, where the Hermes Low-Power Demonstration Reactor will be built. Both ETU 3.0 and Hermes will use reactor modules fabricated at the Albuquerque facility.

Hermes is the first non-light-water reactor to be permitted in the USA in over 50 years. It will not produce electricity, but Hermes 2 - a two 35 MWt-unit plant for which the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a construction permit in November - will include a power generation system.

A deal signed in October by Kairos and Google will support the first commercial deployment of Kairos Power's reactor by 2030, with multiple reactors supplying clean electricity to Google data centres through power purchase agreements.

Partnership to promote nuclear projects in Norway

Friday, 31 January 2025

Nuclear project developer Norsk Kjernekraft has signed a letter of intent with Nordic consultancy company Norconsult to promote the development of nuclear power in Norway. The partners said their cooperation could "result in concrete projects".

(Image: Norsk Kjernekraft)

Norsk Kjernekraft aims to build, own and operate off-grid small modular reactor (SMR) power plants in Norway in collaboration with power-intensive industry. It says it will prepare licence applications in accordance with national regulations and international standards. It will follow the International Atomic Energy Agency's Milestones approach, and focus on what creates value in the early phase. Financing will take place in collaboration with capital-strong industry and solid financial players. 

Norconsult - headquartered in Sandvika, Norway - is one of the Nordic region's leading consulting engineering companies.

"By combining Norsk Kjernekraft's technological innovation and Norconsult's advisory expertise, the companies will be able to strengthen each other and together develop responsible decision-making bases in meeting future energy needs," said Norsk Kjernekraft CEO Jonny Hesthammer.

"Norconsult's experience with large and complex projects will be very valuable in the work of investigating the possibility of nuclear power projects in Norway," added Montserrat Telset, Regional Director West at Norconsult. "Through this agreement, Norconsult will contribute its expertise to ensure that all necessary analyses and studies are carried out in a thorough and fact-based manner."

Norsk Kjernekraft has entered into agreement of intents on the investigation of nuclear power with several municipalities. Halden, in southeast Norway, is the fourth possible location for a nuclear power plant that Norsk Kjernekraft has announced. In August last year, it submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Energy for an assessment of the construction of a power plant based on multiple SMRs in the municipality of Øygarden, west of Bergen. That proposal followed proposals submitted for SMR power plants in Aure and Heim municipalities, as well as Vardø municipality.

In June last year, the Norwegian government announced the appointment of a committee to conduct a broad review and assessment of various aspects of a possible future establishment of nuclear power in the country. It must deliver its report by 1 April 2026.

GE Vernova to invest in North Carolina fuel operations

Friday, 31 January 2025

GE Vernova has announced plans to invest more than USD50 million in GE Hitachi's Wilmington site in North Carolina as part of USD600 million of investments across its US factories and facilities over the next two years.

The Wilmington site (Image: GE Vernova)

The investment in GE Hitachi's manufacturing site will be used to enhance safety, quality and productivity and to launch its next generation nuclear fuel design for the company's BWRX-300 small modular reactor. "Expanding capacity of the fuel manufacturing operation further positions the BWRX-300 as the most ready to deploy advanced reactor on the market," GE Vernova said.

The investment will also go towards expanding automation at the plant, which produces fuel for many of the USA's boiling water reactors, "strongly positioning it for the future as the demand for nuclear energy increases globally, particularly as several US utilities restart retired plants."

The new investments are expected to create more than 1500 new jobs and help drive US energy affordability, national security, and competitiveness, the company said. The investments are the largest since GE Vernova was spun off from GE in April last year, and with worldwide energy needs forecast to double, will help to meet soaring customer demand, strengthen domestic supply chains, and continue developing US technology, the company said. They are the first part of a larger USD9 billion cumulative global capex and R&D investment plan over the next three years announced by the company in December.

"These investments represent our serious commitment and responsibility as the leading energy manufacturer in the United States to help meet America's and the world's accelerating energy demand," said GE Vernova CEO Scott Strazik. "These strategic investments and the jobs they create aim to both help our customers meet the doubling of demand and accelerate American innovation and technology development to boost the country's energy security and global competitiveness."

GE Hitachi's Wilmington operations include the production of zircalloy components, uranium dioxide powder and pellets, and fuel assemblies for the boiling water reactor market.

Landmark agreement clears way for restart of uranium transport

Thursday, 30 January 2025

Energy Fuels Inc expects shipments of ore from its Pinyon Plain Mine in northern Arizona to the White Mesa Mill in southern Utah will restart in February following the signature of an agreement with Navajo agencies on the transport of uranium ore along federal and state highways crossing the Navajo Nation.

The Pinyon Plain mine in Arizona, seen here in a screengrab from an Energy Fuels video (Energy Fuels/Youtube)

The agreement with the Navajo Nation Department of Justice and the Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency also includes a commitment from Energy Fuels to assist in the cleanup of abandoned uranium mines dating as far back as the 1940s. It comes after months of negotiations between the Denver-based company and the Nation's senior leadership following Energy Fuels' voluntary suspension of transports of uranium across Navajo lands in August 2024.

Energy Fuels has agreed to limit transportation to specified routes and hours of the day; not transporting ore on days involving celebrations or public events in respect of the Navajo Nation's culture and traditions; clearly spelled out emergency response procedures, notice and reporting requirements; additional requirements for insurance, driver qualification and training; obtaining Navajo Nation transport licenses; the use of state-of-the-art cover systems to prevent fugitive dust from transport trucks; and provisions for escorts and blessings at the discretion of the Nation. Additional procedures will enable the Navajo Nation to ensure that all applicable rules and agreements are being satisfied.

In addition, Energy Fuels has committed to accepting and transporting, at no cost to the Nation, up to 10,000 tons of uranium-bearing cleanup materials from abandoned uranium mines and to make further contributions to support the Nation's transportation safety programmes, education, the environment, public health and welfare, and local economic development on the Navajo Nation relating to uranium matters.

"The Navajo Nation has suffered longstanding impacts from uranium mining conducted during the cold war era, resulting in numerous abandoned mine and mill sites on their lands. This has understandably caused mistrust toward the US government and energy companies," Energy Fuels President and CEO Mark Chalmers said. "I am personally honoured that the Navajo Nation was willing to work with us in good faith to address their concerns and ensure that uranium ore transportation through the Navajo Nation will be done safely and respectfully."

"We have a settlement agreement that will allow the Navajo Nation to monitor and inspect the haul trucks and that provides financial compensation for the expenses to improve safety and protect the environment," Executive Director of the Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency Stephen Etsitty said.

Energy Fuels announced it had started production at Pinyon Plain in late 2023, with the ore to be stockpiled at White Mesa ahead of processing. The company and its predecessors had previously hauled hundreds of thousands of tons of uranium ore and other materials on state and federal highways and interstates crossing the Navajo Nation between 2007 and 2024 without incident. But on 31 July - after the completion of the first uranium shipment from the project - Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren issued an executive order banning the transport of radioactive material through the Navajo Nation without a prior agreement, referencing existing Navajo laws. "Good faith" negotiations between Energy Fuels and the Navajo Nation to find a solution began in mid-August.

Addressing the legacy
 

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, nearly 30 million tons of uranium ore were extracted from Navajo lands from 1944 to 1986, under leases with the Navajo Nation. With little regulation or oversight of facilities in the 1940s and 1950s - when the focus was on national security rather than environmental protection - those mostly government-sponsored operations have left a legacy of pollution from hundreds of abandoned uranium mines and treatment plants.

Under its agreement with the Navajo Nation, Energy Fuels has committed to accepting and transporting up to 10,000 tons of uranium-bearing cleanup materials from abandoned uranium mines, materials the company described as "an unfortunate relic of old US government uranium programmes that began in the 1940s, in which Energy Fuels had no involvement."

"We are proud to be a part of a historic agreement with the Navajo Nation, and we are committed to fulfilling our promises to the," Chalmers said. "We hope this agreement marks the beginning of a constructive relationship that restores trust with our neighbours, while also paving the way for future collaborations on cleanups and other areas of shared interest."

Mining has continued at Pinyon Plain during the transport suspension, with ore being stockpiled at the mine site: as of 30 September, ore containing around 180,000 pounds U3O8 (69 tU) had been stockpiled at the Arizona mine for eventual processing at White Mesa.

Westinghouse and EDF in running for Slovenia unit, KHNP not bidding

Thursday, 30 January 2025

Westinghouse Electric Company and EDF are each to conduct a Technical Feasibility Study for GEN energija assessing the deployment of their reactors at the proposed new nuclear power plant next to the existing Krško site.

How JEK2 could look (Image: GEN energija)

Slovenia's JEK2 project is for a new one or two-unit nuclear power plant, with up to 2400 MW capacity, next to Krško NPP which has a 696 MWe pressurised water reactor generating about one-third of the country's electricity. Krško is owned and operated by Nuklearna Elektrarna Krško, which is jointly owned by Croatia's Hrvatska elektroprivreda (HEP Group) and Slovenia's GEN Energija.

The JEK2 project team, following discussions with potential nuclear power plant providers EDF, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) and Westinghouse, in May last year, estimated the cost for various reactor sizes, ranging from EUR9.314 billion (USD10.1 billion) for a 1000 MW unit, up to EUR15.371 billion for a 1650 MW unit.

At a press conference on Wednesday Bruno Glaser, GEN energija's JEK2 project manager, said that the Technical Feasibility Studies for the two bidders would cost about EUR8.3 million and would assess the technical and legislative requirements and a range of safety and implementation aspects covering construction and operation. The aim of such a study was to ensure "that the project is planned based on realistic technical possibilities and in accordance with the highest safety and technological standards".

According to the company's briefing "the originally planned third bidder, the Korean company KHNP, informed GEN that it will not submit a bid for the preparation of the study and will not participate in the submission of a bid for the construction of the JEK2 project. Their decision is based on an assessment of the current business environment and a change in their strategic business priorities".

Dan Lipman, President of Westinghouse Energy Systems, said: "Since delivering the first Krško unit, which has operated very successfully since it started operating in 1983, Westinghouse has built a decades-long partnership with GEN energija through operational and fueling support. We are pleased to extend the relationship to closely study the feasibility of the Krško-II project. This potential AP1000 project will not only provide clean, reliable baseload power to Slovenians, it will also deliver real economic benefits and high-quality jobs for years to come while fostering Slovenia’s energy independence."

Westinghouse describes the AP1000 as "the only operating Generation III+ reactor with fully passive safety systems, modular construction design and the smallest footprint per MWe on the market". There are six AP1000 reactors in operation - including Vogtle 3 and 4 in the USA - plus 12 under construction and five more under contract, with AP1000s selected for nuclear programmes in Poland, Ukraine and Bulgaria. It said it had teamed up with Hyundai Engineering & Construction to conduct the Slovenian Technical Feasibility Study.

Slovenia had been due to hold a referendum on new nuclear in November, but that was called off amid a political row over how it was being conducted. Prime Minister Robert Golob said he remained committed to holding a referendum before a final investment decision is taken - which is currently due to be in 2028.

GEN energija said that in 2025 it will also continue to prepare professional studies, namely site safety analysis reports, radiological analyses, flood studies, seismic safety studies and technical feasibility studies. It also said it would be carrying out a pre-feasibility study for the construction of small modular reactors in the country.

Last year Westinghouse, EDF and KHNP were the three bidders for new nuclear in the Czech Republic. KHNP was the winning bidder and an EPC contract is expected to be signed by the end of March, despite EDF and Westinghouse appealing against the decision. Since then it has been announced that Westinghouse and KHNP and Korea Electric Power Cooperation have reached agreement on intellectual property issues - the subject of court cases in the USA - and while details regarding the terms of the settlement remain confidential the companies said "the agreement also sets the stage for future cooperation between the parties to advance new nuclear projects globally".