An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team of experts has concluded a safety review of Romania’s process for selecting the site of the country’s planned small modular reactor, which could become the first SMR built in Europe.

In May, the Romanian government, through state company Nuclearelectrica, announced that it had chosen Doicesti, approximately 90 km northwest of the capital Bucharest, as the preferred site for the SMR, following a study conducted with a United States Trade and Development Agency grant.

In May Nuclearelectrica announced an agreement with US-based SMR developer NuScale that it said could lead to the first SMR being operational in Romania by 2028. It has also signed an agreement with Polish copper producer and industrial group KGHM Polska Miedź to cooperate on the development of SMR technology for potential deployment in both countries.