An Italian energy start-up is pursuing plans to build 20 mini reactors across the UK, as it seeks to capitalise on the country’s nuclear power expansion.
Newcleo is aiming to build a fleet of so-called mini-nukes on up to six sites in Britain, all of which will be situated near energy-intensive industries.
Controversially, the reactors will be powered by plutonium, a fuel not currently used in the UK partly because of its association with nuclear weapons.
The company has said it wants to build near dense population centres after the Government recently relaxed rules restricting nuclear developments to remote locations.
Newcleo said its reactors will be efficient, safe and provide cheap low-carbon power to support UK industries.
Andrew Murdoch, Newcleo’s managing director for nuclear, said: “We have started shortlisting the best locations for us, and we’re advancing some discussions.”
Referring to key industrial centres, such as Teesside, Humberside and Merseyside, he added: “The industrial clusters are a natural place to go. It’s where a lot of the energy transition opportunities are centred, so they provide a great opportunity.”
Mr Murdoch said the generating capacity of Newcleo’s reactors will be significantly less than those under construction at Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C.
However, this means they will be small enough to be built inside factories, potentially offering huge cost savings compared to giant projects such as Hinkley.
Mr Murdoch also indicated how they could be used to exploit exotic new technologies, such as the use of molten lead to transfer heat from the reactor to generate steam for power.
The current focus for Newcleo is to create a working reactor design, which will be the first step towards potentially securing regulatory approval.
If approved, Mr Murdoch said the reactors would cost around £5bn per gigawatt of generation capacity, compared to £15bn per gigawatt cost of Hinkley Point C.
The small reactors could also be built and installed within up to four years, said Mr Murdoch, unlike the two decades required for Hinkley.
That reduction in time will lead to a vast reduction in financing costs, he added.
Newcleo is officially headquartered in London but most of its research and staff is based in Italy.
Its announcement comes at a time of rapid expansion for the nuclear industry.