Rolls-Royce wants to build mini nuclear power plants for one million households

After the World Climate Conference last week, an agreement caused a particularly sensation: the world is slowly but continuously wanting to rely less and less on coal-fired electricity. Although this declaration did not go far enough for many researchers and environmental activists (rightly) and a complete phase-out would be more welcome, it is nevertheless a step forward that all participating countries have agreed on it.

But how can we cover our electricity supply without coal in the future? Sustainable alternatives, such as solar or wind power plants, do not cause any emissions, but the output is not continuously and reliably available. As a result, many countries continue to rely on nuclear power, which could be a transition technology.

Rolls-Royce also sees this and wants to build a small modular nuclear power plant in the future. Specifically, in this context it is the Rolls-Royce company, which has been building machines of all kinds (such as aircraft turbines) for some time, not the car manufacturer that is part of the BMW Group.

After the first round of financing, large sums of money have already been raised. The previously secured 528 million euros come from the energy giant Exelon from the United States (around 229 million euros), the British government (around 246 million euros) and out of their own pockets (around 54 million euros). 16 reactors are initially being planned, one of which covers the area of ​​around two soccer fields.

For comparison: a normal reactor normally requires ten times the space. One million households are to be supplied with electricity reliably and without interruption per system, the small construction has comparatively many advantages. In this way, parts can already be manufactured in factories and delivered ready-made to their destination. This makes construction easier and takes less time.

When they are ready for the market, the new mini-reactors should cost around 2.37 billion euros each, a regular nuclear power plant under construction in England costs around 27.3 billion euros (for 6 million households) by comparison. The mini version should therefore be more cost-effective in the long term (per household). The first models are to be produced from 2030, until then Rolls-Royce still has to do a lot of development work.

Via Gizmodo