The Paris-based Nuclear Energy Agency released its third edition of its Small Modular Reactor Dashboard on Tuesday and its newest edition identified 127 SMR technologies being developed around the globe.
As NEA officials said last week, out of the 127 SMR technologies cited, 74 of them are in active development and are given comprehensive overviews in the latest edition. NEA discussed the latest edition in a Tuesday webinar.
While Russia and China are the only countries to have deployed SMR technologies so far, other countries have projects in the pipeline. The United States alone has over 25 announcements of SMR plans, followed by Canada with nine and the United Kingdom with around six.
Canada has begun construction of its first GE Vernova Hitachi BWRX-300 SMR at its Darlington nuclear site in Ontario, Canada as a part of Ontario Power Generation’s project to deploy four of the SMRs to produce 1,200 megawatts of electricity.
The viability of SMR technology is contingent on financing. Sources of private sector financing are showing more interest in the sector, said NEA head of division of nuclear technology Diane Cameron. In the newest edition, NEA estimates that of the $15.4 billion it is tracking for SMRs globally, $5.4 billion of it will be made from private investments.
World Bank senior energy specialist Lauren Culver said the World Bank is interested in the financial success of SMR deployment. In June, it lifted its ban on funding nuclear projects.
Guggenheim Partners senior managing director James Schaefer said he has seen a growing demand for SMR and microreactor technologies. Data centers companies will spur SMR deployment, he added.
“Tech and data center companies’ involvement is critical not only in terms of having appropriately priced long-term contracts but also potentially equity during the construction,” Schaefer said.
While companies like Google, Microsoft and Meta have made recent power purchase agreements, multiple-unit orders will be a definitive sign of progress in SMR deployment, Schaefer said.
Microsoft sustainability technology lead Conor Kelly said it is possible to use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to expedite data collection and overcome regulatory “bottleneck.
Generative AI could help accelerate regulatory processes such as drafting regulatory applications and detecting possible mistakes prior to submission, Kelly said.
As the SMR deployment gets underway, standardization will be necessary to accelerate future growth, former U.S. deputy secretary of energy Daniel Poneman said.
“Given where we are at as an industry, we’re in a good place, it’s good to have dozens of [reactor] designs right now, but we’re going to have a shakedown period and there’s going to be important role for government to help in making solvent decisions and it’s going to be a critical role in terms of the private sector having an acid test of which designs can survive and prosper,” Poneman said.
