A consortium that includes the UK’s National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) has been chosen to assess the feasibility of both the nuclear reactor design and the fuel production for the first demonstration advanced modular reactor (AMR) in the UK.

The studies are being funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and could lead to a demonstration nuclear plant being online in the UK in the 2030s. The BEIS said nuclear plays “a key role” in the government’s strategies to meet the UK’s net-zero future.

NNL will work with JAEA and US-based multinational engineering group Jacobs to assess the feasibility of the ‘UKJ-HTR’ nuclear power plant. The project will combine JAEA’s knowledge of high-temperature gas reactors (HTGRs), NNL’s research and development experience and Jacobs’ reactor design experience and delivery of major infrastructure projects worldwide.