Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is leading a consortium of government and industry leaders that is applying for an $800m (€775m) US Department of Energy (DOE) grant to accelerate construction of the nation’s first small modular reactor.
The federally owned power company, which owns and operates the Sequoyah and Watts Bar nuclear stations in Tennessee and the Browns Ferry nuclear station in Alabama, said the “strong coalition” includes utilities and developers who are exploring building SMRs, suppliers, construction partners and the state of Tennessee.
GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) is part of the consortium, which aims to accelerate the deployment of GEH’s BWRX-300 SMR technology in the US.
The consortium also includes Bechtel, BWX Technologies, Duke Energy, the Electric Power Research Institute, Indiana Michigan Power, Oak Ridge Associated Universities, Sargent & Lundy, Scot Forge, other utilities and advanced nuclear project developers.
GEH said the coalition has already submitted an application for $800m in funding from the DOE’s Generation III+ SMR programme.
TVA president and chief executive officer Jeff Lyash said that if awarded, the funding will accelerate construction of a BWRX-300 SMR at the company’s Clinch River Project, in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, by two years – with commercial operation planned for 2033.
Funding Will Play ‘Critical Role’
Scott Strazik, chief executive officer of GEH parent company GE Vernova, said funding from the DOE would play a critical role in the path to accelerating the rollout of SMRs in the US.
He said: “Nuclear power has a key role to play in reaching a cleaner and more secure energy future.”
In a separate announcement, GEH said North Carolina-based utility Duke Energy has signed an agreement to invest in activities to advance the design and licensing of the BWRX-300 SMR technology and that American Electric Power has selected the BWRX-300 for potential deployment at the Rockport coal-fired plant in Spencer County, Indiana, pending approval of the DOE funding request.
Momentum continues to build around the global deployment of the BWRX-300, GEH said. In March 2023, it was announced that Ontario Power Generation (OPG), TVA and Synthos Green Energy of Poland were joining GEH in a technical collaboration agreement through which contributors are funding a portion of the costs to design the BWRX-300, with the purpose of ensuring that the design is deployable in many jurisdictions.
OPG is planning to deploy the first BWRX-300 at its Darlington site near Toronto. Early site preparation work has been completed with construction of the first unit expected to start later this year and commercial operations expected to commence by the end of 2029. A total of four units are planned for the site.
