28 Jun (NucNet): The UK government has announced an ambitious £200m funding deal with the nuclear sector that could lead to a new generation small modular reactor being built at an existing nuclear site in north Wales.
The government said the nuclear deal will ensure that nuclear energy continues to power the UK for years to come through major innovation, cutting-edge technology and ensuring a diverse and highly-skilled workforce.
The deal, part of the country’s long-term industrial strategy, is worth over £200m and follows the government’s recent announcement that it is to enter into negotiations with Hitachi over plans to build two UK Advanced-Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) units at Wylfa Newydd on the island of Anglesey in north Wales.
The government said the deal will spearhead Britain’s move towards cleaner economic growth. It focuses on innovation to develop the technology and skills needed to maintain the UK’s position as “one of the world’s leading nuclear countries”.
While the bulk of the £200m investment is confirmation of support pledged last year, the site chosen to launch the sector deal is being seen as significant.
The Trawsfynydd nuclear site, in north Wales, is seen as a possible location for an SMR.
About £56m will go to help eight vendors of SMRs carry out technical studies.
Alun Cairns, secretary of state for Wales, said Trawsfynydd is ready to be transformed with little upgrade needed to the grid infrastructure.
“It’s in the right place with the right people and good links to leading academic research institutions in the nuclear sector. The kind of small reactor which could be sited in Trawsfynydd is set to usher in an era of cost-effective power with equipment put together off site and transported to locations like this for relatively easy assembly.”
Trawsfynydd, which had two 195-MW gas-cooled Magnox reactors, is on a 15-hectare site, on an inland lake in Snowdonia National Park.
Trawsfynydd was the first inland civil Magnox nuclear station. It started service in 1965 and generated 69 TWh of electricity over the 26 years until its closure in 1991.
In 2016 a committee of MPs said Trawsfynydd should be designated as a site for a first-of-its kind SMR station. They said progress should to be made soon if the UK wants to be “first to market” for SMRs.
The deal includes £86m in government funding for fusion research at the UK Atomic Energy Authority’s science centre in Culham in Oxfordshire, and up to £44m for research and development funding to support the development of advanced modular reactors.
The government said as a result of the deal, the nuclear industry will cut costs of new nuclear power stations by 30% by 2030, while cutting the cost of decommissioning old nuclear sites by up to a fifth.
The nuclear deal is online: https://bit.ly/2Krg35W
