Molten salt nuclear plant could be deployed by 2032
Dutch and French nuclear safety authorities ANVS and ASN are collaborating on a preparatory review of Thorizon’s molten salt reactor (MSR), Thorizon One, in an effort to streamline the pre-licence applications expected in 2025.
Dutch-French startup Thorizon said the review – which aims to understand the reactor’s design and safety features – will take place through a series of joint technical meetings starting this autumn to present simultaneously to both authorities ahead of pre-licence applications expected at the same time in both countries in 2025.
Thorizon said it is aiming to deploy the 100 MW Thorizon One reactor by 2032. It said the plant can provide flexible electricity for 250,000 households or industrial heat at 550 °C.
Thorizon, a spin-off from the Dutch Nuclear Research and Consultancy Group (NRG), with offices in Amsterdam and Lyon, is developing the reactor. Invest-NL, the Dutch National Promotional Institute, is a shareholder in Thorizon. The project, as part of a consortium with French nuclear fuel cycle company Orano, received a €10m ($11m) grant from the French state under the France 2030 “innovative nuclear reactors” investment plan.
According to Thorizon, MSRs are recognised as a promising new nuclear technology. The reactors can recycle spent nuclear fuel, thereby reducing long-lived nuclear waste.
MSRs are capable of handling very high temperatures under low pressure and their inherent safety characteristics are expected to lower construction costs, the company said.
In the reactor core, a molten salt mixture containing fissionable materials acts as both the fuel and the coolant, eliminating potential meltdowns by keeping the fuel in a molten state.
