Small modular reactors will consolidate the data centre sector’s role as a cornerstone of the “fourth industrial revolution” and could become a driving force behind new energy and infrastructure-building partnerships, a white paper on SMRs’ role in providing sustainable energy to data centres says.

Engineering and consulting company Tractebel and its subsidiary company, RED Engineering Design, co-authored the white paper, which explores how powering data centres with advanced nuclear technologies can work as early as the beginning of the 2030s.

The white paper comes as data centres across the world increasingly look for new long-term clean electricity suppliers.

However, this will be a step-by-step process of trial and progress while new business models for cooperation emerge.