Go-ahead will be given for 300 MW advanced light-water BWRX-300 nuclear plant
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is set to formally issue a construction permit for federally owned utility Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) Clinch River-1 nuclear plant.
It will be only the second commercial advanced reactor construction permit ever issued in the US and the first for a GE Vernova Hitachi (GVH) BWRX‑300 small modular reactor (SMR).
The NRC said the permit for a plant at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, establishes a “clear, repeatable licensing pathway that future SMR applicants across the country can follow, supporting more predictable and efficient deployment”.
It said: “This action reflects the NRC’s continued progress in regulatory efficiency and process improvement, demonstrating how effective regulatory engagement can support timely, predictable licensing decisions,” a statement said.
According to the NRC, the permit is an important national milestone for advancing nuclear innovation, strengthening US energy leadership and enabling future deployment of SMRs.
The only other commercial advanced reactor construction permit issued in the US was in March this year for Unit 1 of TerraPower’s Kemmerer nuclear facility in Wyoming.
TVA is the first utility applying to build GVH’s BWRX-300 design in the US and could pave the way for other utilities looking to deploy the same technology.
TVA submitted its application to the NRC in late May to build the advanced nuclear plant at its Clinch River site near Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
The utility already secured the nation’s first early site permit for an SMR with support from the US Department of Energy to clear the environmental review process.
The 300 MW advanced light-water BWRX-300 is a smaller, simplified version of GVH’s licensed Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor.
TVA has invested in the design of the BWRX-300 as part of a technical collaboration agreement with GVH, Canadian power company Ontario Power Generation (OPG) and Poland-based nuclear developer Synthos Green Energy.
In May 2025 the province of Ontario and OPG approved a CAD20.9bn (€13bn, $15.2bn) plan to build the first of four BWRX-300 SMRs at OPG’s Darlington site in Canada with commercial operation expected by the end of 2029.
Only a handful of SMRs have been completed and only in Russia and China. The Darlington project is expected to be the first to be deployed in the developed Group of Seven countries.
Early site preparation work at Darlington, on a site next to an existing nuclear station with four operational large-scale nuclear plants, has been completed.
