DOE Locks in Three New Public-Private Partnerships for Small Modular Nuclear Reactors

The project aims to support private sector testing, development and licensing of SMR technologies

The U.S. Department of Energy has announced that it will begin developing small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) technologies along with its Savannah River Site (SRS) through three new public-private partnerships.

The three new partnerships are part of the Energy Department's efforts to cement nuclear power as an energy solution in the U.S. Over the past three years alone, the Energy Department has invested $170 million in research grants regarding advanced reactor concepts and safety. The Energy Department just recently made a $10 million investment in new research that seeks to solve common problems in the nuclear power industry.



"The Obama Administration continues to believe that low-carbon nuclear energy has an important role to play in America's energy future," said Steven Chu, Secretary of Energy. "We are committed to restarting the nation's nuclear industry and advancing the next generation of these technologies, helping to create new jobs and export opportunities for American workers and businesses."

Now, the U.S. Department of Energy, SRS, and Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) have locked in three separate agreements with private companies SMR, LLC, which is a subsidiary of Holtec International; Hyperion Power Generation Inc., and NuScale Power, LLC for nuclear energy.

The partnerships will help deploy SMR technologies at SRS facilities near Aiken, South Carolina. The project aims to support private sector testing, development and licensing of SMR technologies.

"We have a unique combination of nuclear knowledge and laboratory expertise, infrastructure, location and much more to make the Site a natural fit for advancing the small modular reactor technology," said Dr. Dave Moody, DOE-SR Manager. "We are about reinvigorating SRS assets to impact national needs and influence new missions for the future of the Savannah River Site."

While nuclear power received some bad publicity last year after the earthquake in Japan caused a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, which led to U.S. senators demanding that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) repeat a costly inspection of nuclear power, nuclear power is making a comeback. In December 2011, the NRC approved the First Gen. III+ Reactor design, which puts the U.S. only three years behind China as far as nuclear reactors go.

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