Global goals to decarbonize major sectors are bringing about increased investments and developments within the renewable energy space, and nuclear energy is one up-and-coming avenue gaining traction with the rise of small modular reactors. IDTechEx's portfolio of Energy & Decarbonization Research Reports and Subscriptions covers the latest developments.
SMRs at scale and their increased safety
Small modular reactors (SMRs) are nuclear fission reactors that have the benefit of being much smaller than traditional power plants. Due to their smaller size, they bring about the possibility of making nuclear projects less costly, while also creating opportunities for increased safety and new business opportunities.
Large nuclear reactors are known for having net capacities that exceed 1600MWe, while SMRs can generate less than 300MWe, highlighting a clear difference in power usage and the possibility for a subsequent reduction of costs. Reduced costs may also come about as a result of achieving economies of scale in the future. SMR modules are transportable, unlike large projects that require on-site building, and are able to be deployed at scale. This could mean that as more and more SMRs are used worldwide, the return on the initial manufacturing and transportation investments is likely to make this renewable energy endeavour very worthwhile.
The drivers behind increased nuclear energy applications
Energy security and the need for increasing domestic energy supply chains is one driver behind the growing nuclear energy interest, as nuclear fuels can be stockpiled, while a global awareness of the need for decarbonization and sustainability initiatives also presents nuclear technology as a means to meet net-zero goals. From an application perspective, the rapid growth of data centers to keep up with computing demand is pushing for increases in power availability. As nuclear energy can provide reliable, always-on, electrical grid capacity, for many applications including data centers, nuclear power will be a superior choice to wind and solar energy which as a result of intermittency may struggle to provide the same reliability.
New uses cases for SMRs are also pushing nuclear demand forward, especially since SMRs can be deployed in a greater range of locations compared with traditional nuclear plants. The reduced size of SMRs means that designs can be more advanced and better suited to specific application requirements, meaning alongside location flexibility, safety features can be enhanced, and technology innovations can become more advanced.
Global SMRs
IDTechEx's report, "Nuclear Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) Market 2026-2046: Technologies, Players, Benchmarking, Forecasts", also covers regional trends in SMR uptake. Russia and China have 'early leadership', having already deployed the first operational SMRs. However, according to IDTechEx's research, the USA is the largest hotspot for development by number of projects, with 27 individual projects and 2 collaborations with other countries. Japan, Canada, the UK, and France follow behind these leading countries in terms of developments, while many other countries such as Argentina and South Africa are also following suit. SMRs are designed to have high export potential, meaning areas of development may differ from high density areas of deployment, meaning an SMR could likely be operational first in a country it was not manufactured in.
Increasing energy security continues to be the largest global driver behind these developments as a result of the possibility for distributed and diverse energy, domestic supply chains, and the opportunity for nuclear energy stockpiling. However, many projects are still dependent on public funding, such as direct loans or grants to build SMRs, while incentives such as providing sites for nuclear projects and investment matching to encourage private investments are also in place.
For more information on small modular reactors and the nuclear energy sector as a whole, visit IDTechEx's portfolio of Energy & Decarbonization Research Reports and Subscriptions for the latest developments.
