Britain gives Rolls-Royce the nod to sketch out its mini reactor future
Contract kicks off design work, but SMRs unlikely to generate power before the mid-2030s
The British government has signed a deal with Rolls‑Royce to carry out the design work on small modular reactors (SMRs).
Great British Energy – Nuclear (GBE-N), a government-owned company, said the Rolls‑Royce SMR contract formally starts technology design activities for what are intended to be the country's first SMRs.
However, if they are still in the design phase, these small-scale nuclear generators are unlikely to produce power before the next decade.
SMRs are atomic reactors with up to one-third of the generating capacity of conventional nuclear power plants, with a modular design so they can be largely factory-assembled before being transported to the relevant site for installation.
Rolls-Royce SMR was selected as the preferred provider in June last year from a shortlist of four bidders, and £2.6 billion ($3.5 billion) was allocated in the 2025 Spending Review to enable this contract and any wider program delivery costs.
However, this funding was given to GBE-N to oversee delivery of the entire project. The value of the contract with Rolls-Royce SMR is not being disclosed at present, we were told, but the firm has access to a £599 million ($805 million) loan facility from the National Wealth Fund, should it need to dip into this as well.
The contract requires Rolls-Royce SMR to work with GBE-N to meet key milestones as it commences site-specific design, regulatory engagement, and planning processes, ahead of a future Final Investment Decision.
We asked GBE-N when we can expect this "Final Investment Decision" to be made.
But as far as Rolls-Royce SMR is concerned, the contract enables it to start work immediately on the delivery of the three initial SMRs at Wylfa on Anglesey, an island off the coast of Wales.
Wylfa was chosen because it is already the site of a former Magnox nuclear power station that has been inactive since 2015. It was acquired by GBE-N from engineering firm Hitachi early in 2024 for £160 million ($210 million), along with another nuclear plant at Oldbury in Gloucestershire.
The three-unit project is expected to generate at least 1.4 GW of electricity, supplying enough stable, clean electricity to power the equivalent of around three million homes for more than 60 years. But power requirements are shifting. The UK government wants Brits to favor electric vehicles and plans to allow lots more power-hungry AI datacenters to be built.
Alan Howard, principal analyst at Omdia, has previously explained that commercially viable SMRs remain roughly a decade away.
"Operational SMRs appear to be on the near-term horizon a bit earlier than 2030," he told us last year. "These announcements, at least in the US, are commonly test reactors which is the next development step. Omdia has talked with many power generation project developers and the consensus is that broad market acceptance and availability is likely around 2035, so about ten years out."
A spokesperson for Rolls-Royce SMR confirmed to The Register that the Wylfa SMRs will likely be operational by the mid-2030s.
Rolls-Royce SMR is majority-owned by its parent, Rolls-Royce plc, along with France's BNF Resources, the Qatar Investment Authority, and Czech energy firm ČEZ. The latter selected Rolls-Royce SMR last year to provide up to 3 GW of low-carbon energy for Czechia.
UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband described the latest news as a major milestone for Britain's energy security.
"We are backing a British company to deliver our first small modular reactors – creating a generation of good jobs, driving growth and providing clean, homegrown power for decades to come," he commented.
Rolls-Royce SMR chief exec Chris Cholerton said his firm is transforming the way nuclear projects are delivered, giving greater cost and schedule certainty with a standardized, factory-built approach.
"This contract unlocks the delivery of our first three units and brings certainty to the UK SMR programme. With plans for up to six further units in Czechia, this announcement makes Rolls-Royce SMR the only company with multiple commitments in Europe," he claimed. ®