Rolls-Royce, the UK-based global industrial technology group, announced on Monday that it has signed its second memorandum of understanding (MoU) regarding small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) in two days. This second MoU is with predominantly State-owned Czech electricity utility CEZ, which is one of the ten largest energy companies in Europe and has operations in six European countries in addition to the Czech Republic.

Rolls-Royce is leading an industry consortium (known as UKSMR), backed by the British government, to develop SMR nuclear power plants (NPPs), to be built for the UK itself and for export. The aim is to use advanced manufacturing techniques to produce the modules (which will make up the NPP) in factories and assemble them on site, within weatherproof canopies, all of which will serve to reduce costs.

“Nuclear power is central to tackling climate change and economic recovery across the world,” affirmed UKSMR interim CEO Tom Samson. “The affordability and speed with which we can assemble the entire power station will no doubt make it a very attractive option for CEZ as it looks to its future reliable low carbon energy. I look forward to developing this important relationship for the future.”

“New energy solutions and technologies play an important role in our business and we have been focusing on small modular reactors for quite some time now, especially in our top research company UJV Rez,” reported CEZ chairman and CEO Daniel Benes. “In the future, they can be an important alternative that we cannot ignore. The partnership with Rolls-Royce and other global companies is therefore a logical step in our endeavour.”

CEZ already operates two NPPs, at Dukovany and Temelin, both using Russian VVER reactors (the Russian version of pressurised water reactors, totally unrelated to the RBMK reactors that caused the disaster at Chernobyl in 1986). Dukovany has four VVER 440 model V213 reactors and Temelin has two VVER 1000 model V320 reactors. These two NPPs are responsible for some 33% of the country’s electricity production. 

The Czech Republic’s State Energy Concept requires the construction of new NPPs, to help replace the country’s current coal-fired power stations, which generate some 53% of the country’s electricity. Although the country will also increase its use of renewable electricity sources, its small size and other geographic factors limit its renewable energy potential.

On Sunday Rolls-Royce reported that it had signed an MoU regarding SMRs with giant US electricity utility Exelon.