The United States signed a memorandum of cooperation with Japan and South Korea to create a framework between the three to deploy small modular reactors (SMRs) in other countries.
The initial focus on the countries’ three-way cooperation would initially focus on the Indo-Pacific region, according to the Department of State’s Tuesday press release. The agreement was signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Japan’s Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu and South Korea’s Foreign Minister Cho Hyun during the NATO Summit held in Ankara, Turkey.
Under the framework of the memorandum of cooperation, the three countries will focus on adopting fleet deployment models that would mitigate risk in project development, expedite licensing processes and build up nuclear supply chains. They will also look to bring in private capital investment to move these SMR projects forward.
The Department of State said the U.S. is committing over $10 million in funding for the department’s Foundational Infrastructure for Responsible Use of Small Modular Reactor Technology (FIRST) program to support this initiative. With this new funding, it will be used to provide technical support to countries in the Indo-Pacific region for the use of civil nuclear energy, the State Department said.
FIRST, established in 2021 under the Joe Biden administration, is a multi-agency government program focused on providing building support to allied countries exploring advanced nuclear technology, including SMRs.
While the new funding is planned to support SMR deployment work there, it will also establish an SMR regional training center for workforce development, according to the release.