Rolls-Royce has cautioned that the UK risks falling behind in the global competition for mini nuclear reactors, as the company predicts a minimum six-month delay in securing a deal for their own reactor design.
Despite the government’s upcoming design competition and the establishment of Great British Nuclear (GBN) to support small modular reactor (SMR) projects, Rolls-Royce highlighted the need for speed in order to maintain credibility and keep pace with international advancements in energy security and independence.
Alan Woods, Director of Strategy and Business Development at Rolls-Royce SMR, highlighted the importance of pace and urgency in the development of mini nuclear reactors during his speech at the northern nuclear conference in Carlisle.
Woods said: “The challenge we have is, whilst we were probably ahead, what we’re seeing now, certainly across Europe, is it’s not just about net zero. It’s about energy security. And that’s driving a real push for energy independence and new nuclear.
“That means a lot of the processes that are running internationally are compressing, they are coming forward and that puts a challenge on us because we cannot continue to be credible in those processes whilst we still haven’t got a project that we can point to in the UK.”
