Rolls-Royce SMR advances with Škoda JS and Doosan Enerbility as key supplier partners

Rolls-Royce SMR has taken another step towards industrialising small nuclear reactor production by naming Škoda JS of the Czech Republic and South Korea’s Doosan Enerbility as suppliers for key parts of its programme.

According to the company, the two groups will carry out pre-production work on nuclear island components, including the reactor pressure vessel body, alongside early supplier engagement, design finalisation and manufacturing preparation. Rolls-Royce SMR said th...

e arrangement is intended to cut risk and improve the chances of delivering first power as early as possible.

The move reflects a wider shift in nuclear construction away from one-off projects towards a more repeatable manufacturing model. Rather than designing and building each reactor from scratch, Rolls-Royce wants to establish a process that can support serial production and, eventually, a global fleet.

Ruth Todd CBE, Rolls-Royce SMR’s operations and supply chain director, said the items involved were among the most time-consuming in nuclear construction. She said the company was building strategic relationships early so the components could be designed with manufacture in mind, while also arguing that a dual-supply approach would improve certainty across the programme.

The first units are expected to be deployed at Wylfa in north Wales and at Temelín in the Czech Republic, with further reactors then intended for international markets. Rolls-Royce says that approach could create longer-term opportunities for suppliers and support sustained growth across the wider nuclear supply chain.

The latest development comes after the UK government selected Rolls-Royce SMR as the preferred bidder to work with Great British Energy – Nuclear on the country’s first small modular reactors. Ministers have said the programme could support as many as 3,000 jobs at peak construction and generate enough electricity for about 3 million homes.

Rolls-Royce SMR’s 470MWe design has also moved through the UK’s Generic Design Assessment process, with regulators from the Office for Nuclear Regulation, the Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales advancing their review after the completion of earlier stages. That regulatory progress is seen as a key prerequisite for eventual deployment.

Source: Noah Wire Services