Landmark agreement includes plans for world’s first microreactors and cooperation on approvals
The UK and US have agreed a deal to boost the building of nuclear plants in both countries, clearing the way for a major expansion of new nuclear projects and the speeding up of approvals for new reactors.
The deal – known as the Atlantic Partnership for Advanced Nuclear Energy – is expected to be signed during US president Donald Trump’s state visit to the UK this week and could see multiple leading US nuclear companies build projects in the UK.
The UK government said the deal heralds new “golden age” of nuclear and drive forward the government’s “energy superpower mission” to take back control of Britain’s energy for good.
The deal will also make it quicker for companies to build new nuclear power stations in both countries, for example by speeding up the time it takes for a nuclear project to get a licence from roughly three or four years to roughly two.
This will mean that if rigorous safety checks have been passed in one country, that can be used to speed up assessment in the other.
The UK government said in a statement that the deal clears the way for a major expansion of new nuclear projects in the country, a sector which has already seen 11,000 new jobs this year following government-led investment.
“The expansion of nuclear power is central to the UK government’s clean energy superpower mission, as part of the UK’s drive to build more clean homegrown power to ensure energy security,” the statement said.
The plans are in the early stages and will require financing and government support to get off the ground.
The UK-US Commercial Nuclear Agreements
Major commercial deals to be announced this week under the UK-US partnership are:
- US nuclear reactor and fuel company X-energy and UK energy company Centrica plan to build up to 12 small modular reactors (SMRs) in Hartlepool in northeast England, with a follow-on UK-wide programme targeting a fleet of 6 GW of power.
- Energy technology company Holtec, EDF and Tritax will seek to develop advanced data centres powered by SMRs at the former Cottam coal-fired power station in Nottinghamshire, eastern England.
- US reactor company Last Energy and DP World will establish one of the world’s first micro modular nuclear power plants to provide power for an expansion of DP World’s London Gateway port and business park.
- TerraPower, the nuclear reactor company founded by Bill Gates, and KBR plan to conduct studies and evaluate sites in the UK for the deployment of TerraPower’s Natrium advanced reactor technology.
- Enrichment multinational Urenco and US-based Radiant are to sign a £4m ($5.4m, €4.6m) deal to supply high-assay low-enriched uranium (Haleu) for advanced reactors to the US market.
The partnership aims to eliminate any dependence on Russian nuclear material by the end of 2028. Currently, Russia produces most Haleu for commercial use. Some production has begun in the US under a Department of Energy initiative to reduce reliance on foreign sources.
The UK government said the biggest backing of nuclear in a generation is leading to a private sector boom, cementing the country as a world-leading investment destination for nuclear with US companies entering the market to create jobs and growth.
Figures published on 15 September by the Nuclear Industry Association show that the nuclear industry now employs a record 98,000 people in the UK.
“Under previous governments the build-out of new nuclear has been slow due to inaction, delay and red tape,” the government said. “This deal will help speed up deployment for both US and UK companies entering the market.”
The partnership extends to fusion energy, through coordinated experimental programmes where British and American expertise will combine with AI technology to develop advanced simulation tools, whilst test facilities will fast-track progress towards commercial fusion power.
Ushering In ‘A True Nuclear Renaissance’
The UK government has launched a major push to expand nuclear power in recent months, pledging to invest £14bn for two new nuclear plants at Sizewell C and advancing plans for Rolls-Royce’s SMR unit to build the country’s SMR.
“Together with the US, we’re building a golden age of nuclear that puts both countries at the forefront of global innovation and investment,” said UK prime minister Keir Starmer.
US energy secretary Chris Wright said Trump was “ushering in a true nuclear renaissance” and that the deals being announced during the visit would secure nuclear supply chains across the Atlantic.
Welcoming the nuclear agreement, aerospace and engineering company Rolls-Royce said it had entered the US regulatory process for its small modular reactors, signalling its intent to roll them out in the US as well as in the UK and elsewhere.
Commenting on its new partnership deal with X-Energy, Centrica’s chief executive officer Chris O’Shea said it would build a resilient, affordable, low-carbon energy system, while X-Energy’s chief executive officer J. Clay Sell said Hartlepool was the right place for it to scale its technology in Britain given its experienced workforce and local services.
Holtec chair and chief executive officer Kris Singh said its plan with EDF would create thousands of local jobs while drawing on the lessons from its Palisades project in Michigan, while Simone Rossi, chief executive officer of EDF in the UK, said the plan would benefit energy security.
