ABB has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Rolls-Royce SMR, a nuclear power company developing small modular reactor (SMR) technology. Within the scope of the MoU the two companies will explore collaboration opportunities on Rolls-Royce SMR’s plans to develop a fleet of units, each of which will generate 470 MW of low-carbon electricity. ABB will explore how its automation, electrification, instrumentation and communication solutions across its three business areas can enable the SMR projects to scale.
Rolls-Royce SMR has begun site-specific design and delivery activities for the UK’s first SMRs, initially comprising three units in North Wales, expected to create thousands of jobs and boost local-for-local supply chains. The company is also working with ČEZ to deploy Rolls-Royce SMRs at Temelín – with potential for additional units at Tušimice and Dětmarovice – and has recently been selected by Videberg Kraft to deliver three SMRs on Sweden’s Värö Peninsula. The MoU collaboration will be developed through ABB’s UK operations, which are headquartered in Warrington, UK.
According to the International Energy Agency SMRs can be a catalyst for change if boosted by government support and new business models. With current policy settings, the IEA forecasts that total SMR capacity will reach 40 GW by 2050 – but with tailored policy support for nuclear power, streamlined regulations for SMRs and industry delivery on new designs, capacity could reach 120 GW.
Per Erik Holsten, president of ABB’s Energy Industries division, commented: “Collaboration is key – no single company or country alone can deliver the scale of energy expansion and energy transformation required to meet future demand. Partnerships along the energy value chain are instrumental for accelerating the commercialization of modern, advanced nuclear technologies.”
The design of the Rolls-Royce SMR is based on a pressurised water reactor (PWR) using technology that is already operating within hundreds of nuclear reactors worldwide. The Rolls-Royce SMR’s PWR is a symmetrically arranged, three-loop, close coupled reactor. The plant design prioritises operational safety, redundancy and back-up systems, to meet ‘the highest standards of safety, security and safeguards’.
