18 Apr (NucNet): Ontario-based Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) have issued an invitation to small modular reactor (SMR) project developers to participate in an evaluation process for the construction and operation of an SMR demonstration project at a CNL-managed site.
CNL said in a statement that the invitation marks the start of CNL’s SMR review process which will allow to evaluate the technical and business qualities of proposed designs, assess their financial viability, and review the necessary national security requirements.
Project proposals will be received semi-annually, with the first application deadline being 28 May 2018, the statement said.
CNL said they have identified SMRs as one of seven strategic initiatives in the organisation’s long-term strategy. The goal is to deploy an SMR on a CNL-managed nuclear campus by 2026, CNL said,
CNL also said they are working to demonstrate the commercial viability of SMRs and hope to position themselves as a global leader in SMR prototype testing and technology development support.
In June 2017, CNL issued a request for expressions of interest on SMRs, asking for input from SMR technology developers, potential end users, and other interested parties including potential host communities, unions, the nuclear supply chain, and research and academic institutions.
In October 2017, CNL said they had received responses from 80 organisations, including 19 expressions of interest in siting a prototype or demonstration SMR at a CNL campus.
