NuScale and Standard Power are developing two new nuclear reactors facilities in Ohio and Pennsylvania powered by its SMR technology. The plan is to build 24 units of its 77 MWe modules, producing 1,848 MWe energy from both sites. Standard Power thinks this facility could be operational by 2029 at the earliest.
Nuscale has developed many nuclear fission reactor components but they have not been able to show they can develop low cost modular nuclear reactors.
Since 2007, NuScale has invested nearly $1.8 billion in developing SMR technology. This modular design means the SMRs can be manufactured at NuScale’s plant and transported to the site for assembly, potentially reducing construction costs and the time it takes to bring a plant up to operation. The design also allows for a scalable plant that can accommodate up to 12 modules supporting an output of 924 megawatts (MW).
Originally, a Utah project’s costs were estimated to be around $3 billion. These estimates rose to $6.1 billion in 2023 and $9.3 billion in 2023, finally becoming too expensive for UAMPS (Utah).
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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Have any small reactors actually been licensed yet by the NRC?
The 55MWe version of NuScale is an NRC approved design.
Just another Light Water Reactor. It’s not innovative enough.
anything other than a LWR is as real as a teslabot – IOW reaching, unnecessary fiction.
Stock hit $2/ea when UAMPS fell apart when NuScale did an honest accounting of FOAK costs and all the participants were like, “yeah, ah no”.
I have no doubt a station will be built, and if it were ‘just another LWR’ there would be even more certainty, but whoever ginned up the idea that 12 steam plants with 12 condensers with 12 condensate systems with 12 feedwater pumps with 48 reactor protection system channels would be demonstrate ‘economies of standardized production’ over ‘economies of scale’, was insincere like a federal democrat kneeling on Kwanza. The manpower, maintenance don’t look like less than an AP1000 and the availability/capacity sure is less with a 700-900 MW rating and 1 of 12 units in refueling every month (92% capacity at best).
1 of 12 in refueling every other month (96% capacity).
Agree with scaryjello. The economics are dismal.