Ahead of the first Nuclear Energy Summit (NES) in Brussels later this month, experts have looked at the challenges facing the commercialisation of small modular reactors in Europe and how to make new projects more competitive.

“NES is a big and well attended event, so I am expecting that it will create political momentum and a lot of money will have to be mobilised,” said Yves Desbazeilles, director-general of the Brussels-based nucleareurope industry group at a webinar organised by the New Nuclear Watch Institute (NNWI) in London on 12 March.

“The event wants to create momentum beyond Europe”, he said. “Building the equivalent of 100 GW to 120 GW of new installed nuclear capacity is required in Europe, and SMRs will take a significant share of that.”

NES, on 21 March, will be co-chaired by the prime minister of Belgium Alexander De Croo and the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi. The IAEA said the summit will be the highest-level meeting to date exclusively focused on the topic of nuclear energy.