The UK government has selected Rolls-Royce SMR as the preferred bidder to partner with Great British Energy – Nuclear to develop small modular reactors, subject to final government approvals and contract signature.

Great British Energy – Nuclear is also rebranding as Great British Nuclear, reflecting its joint mission with Great British Energy to rollout clean homegrown power as two publicly-owned energy companies.

The government is pledging over £2.5 billion for the overall small modular reactor programme in this Spending Review period – with this project potentially supporting up to 3,000 new skilled jobs and powering the equivalent of around three million homes with clean, secure homegrown energy.

The UK government is calling this ‘the biggest nuclear rollout for a generation” which will support the clean power mission, boosting energy security and protecting families’ finances. Great British Nuclear is aiming to sign contracts with Rolls-Royce SMR later this year and will form a development company.

Great British Nuclear will also aim to allocate a site later this year and connect projects to the grid in the mid-2030s. Once small modular reactors and Sizewell C come online in the 2030s, combined with the new station at Hinkley Point C, this will deliver more nuclear to the grid than over the previous half century.

‘SMRs’ are smaller and quicker to build than traditional nuclear plants, with costs likely to come down as units are rolled out.

The outcome of this competition is the first step towards reducing costs and unlocking private finance, enabling the UK to realise its long-term ambition of delivering one of Europe’s first small modular reactor fleets. It comes after the government announced plans to shake up the planning rules to make it easier to build nuclear, including small modular reactors across the country.

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“We are ending the no-nuclear status quo as part of our Plan for Change and are entering a golden age of nuclear with the biggest building programme in a generation,” energy secretary Ed Miliband said.

“Great British Energy – Nuclear has run a rigorous competition and will now work with the preferred bidder Rolls-Royce SMR to build the country’s first ever small modular reactors – creating thousands of jobs and growing our regional economies while strengthening our energy security.”

The global SMR market is, according to the International Energy Agency, projected to reach up to nearly £500 billion by 2050.

The selection follows a rigorous and transparent procurement process over 2 years, with the competition having launched in July 2023. Subject to final approvals and contract signature, Rolls-Royce SMR Ltd will enter a strategic technology development partnership with Great British Energy – Nuclear – a fully publicly-owned company.

Rolls-Royce SMR is progressing through the final stage of the assessment by the UK nuclear industry’s independent regulators.