Rolls-Royce has awarded a contract to Nuclear AMRC for the development of a small modular reactor (SMR) demonstrator.

The project will develop an understanding of modules and help underpin the early stage design principles for the manufacture, construction and operation of its SMR power plants in the UK.

Rolls-Royce is leading a consortium of British firms to design an SMR power station, which it says could be competitive against wind and solar, costing “as low as £60/MWh”.

Chief Engineer for SMRs said: “Modular design is central to our UK SMR Power Station, not only for the reactor components but for the construction of the entire plant.

“The UK SMR uses road transportable modules that are completed in factories and transported for direct ‘plug and play’ installation on site, allowing a fleet of reactors to be built and operated with much greater levels of cost certainty and operational efficiency.”