Derby-based Rolls-Royce SMR has placed a contract with Westinghouse Electric Company UK Ltd to develop a fuel design for its small modular reactor – a vital part of the ongoing Generic Design Assessment by the UK’s independent regulators.
The design work, undertaken jointly in the UK and US, includes associated core components and will be based on an existing Westinghouse PWR fuel assembly design.
Helena Perry, Rolls-Royce SMR’s Regulatory Affairs and Safety Director, said: “Placing the contract to design the fuel for the Rolls-Royce SMR is an important step in our programme of work as we progress through the GDA process with the UK’s nuclear regulators.
“Westinghouse has a strong heritage and unrivalled experience in nuclear fuel design and manufacturing. Placing this contract with Westinghouse will help deliver our commitment to maximise UK supply chain content and will support a long-term sustainable future for the nuclear industry.”
The contract supports the recent Atlantic Declaration and civil nuclear partnership between the UK and US governments – which helps facilitate the safe, secure, and sustainable international deployment of advanced, peaceful nuclear technologies, including small modular reactors.
“This collaboration between Westinghouse and Rolls-Royce SMR will help drive the future of nuclear fuel deployment. Westinghouse is proud to bring its generations of experience designing and manufacturing fuel in the UK,” said Tarik Choho, Westinghouse President of Nuclear Fuel. “This contract presents an exciting opportunity for our Springfields site in Lancashire.”
Rolls-Royce SMR, supported by grant funding from UKRI, has a team of more than 600 UK based people already working on the project to develop a unique ‘factory-built’ power plant, with each unit capable of generating enough low-carbon electricity to power a million homes for more than 60 years.
