Widening countries look to steal a lead in next generation nuclear power stations

Central and eastern European countries have emerged as early movers next generation nuclear power plants, laying plans to deploy small modular reactors (SMR), in sharp contrast with countries like Germany and Belgium, which are phasing out nuclear power.

Poland for one, has approve construction of six SMRs, and has also agreed to build a traditional reactor using Westinghouse technology and to a potential project with South Korean suppliers. 

The impetus comes from being Europe's highest carbon emitter, at 928 g CO2/kWh, which has driven Poland to look for alternative energy sources. The same motivation has seen other countries in the region start to explore nuclear power.

"Traditionally, central and eastern Europe has high carbon emissions, especially Poland and Czechia, followed by Romania, Bulgaria, and Slovenia," said Leon Cizelj, division head and professor of nuclear engineering at the University of Ljubljana "Only France and Scandinavia are green: Scandinavia because of hydropower, France because of nuclear,” he told Science|Business. To decarbonise quickly, countries like Slovenia are mostly looking at nuclear power, either building new classic reactors or turning to SMRs.

“Central and astern Europe need to build capacity as soon as possible, and that's maybe the reason why we are more active than western countries," said Štěpán Kochánek from the Czech State Office for Nuclear Safety. He claims that developed European nations already have more capacity and don't need to adapt to carbon neutrality.

With it plans to have an SMR plant functioning by 2029, Romania may surpass Poland in SMR adoption. The country has  a strategic partnership with the US nuclear power company NuScale to build an SMR facility in Doicești, 90  kilometres from the capital Bucharest.

Nuclear physics professor Dumitru Chirleșan views this as an opportunity for Romania to be a leader, as was the case in the 1970’s, when there was a decision to shift away from Soviet-bloc technology in favour of more efficient Canadian technology. "I look with confidence at today's choice to become leaders in SMR technology," Chirleșan said.

Meanwhile, Czechia has identified 45 potential SMR sites and partnered with Rolls-Royce SMR, though deployment is not due until after 2030. 

Slovenia has included SMR development in its spatial development strategy 2050, along with the construction of a second nuclear site, while Bulgaria has begun preliminary discussions with the US Trade and Development Agency regarding SMR implementation at the Kozloduy nuclear ower plant site.

The state of SMR deployment in Europe, based on data from world-nuclear.org.

Unproven technology

Although as yet an unproven technology, SMRs are expected to offer advantages over traditional nuclear facilities. 

For one, they will be compatible with existing electricity grids. "They don't require a sophisticated network," said Dumitru Chirleșan, director of the National University Alliance for Nuclear Power in Romania. "They can connect to the first high-voltage line available and become a local supplier.” Romania’s current SMR project, set to reach a capacity of 420 MWe (megawatt electric, an industry term for a unit of power), will generate enough to power a medium-size city.

While SMRs are cheaper to build than traditional nuclear reactors, but that will not be reflected in the cost per MWe. "If you make a reactor three times smaller, it won't be three times cheaper," said Cizelj. But because the total investment is lower, investors and governments might find it easier to commit to SMRs. However, the economic feasibility is currently just theoretical and hinges on the production of SMRs at large scale, And before they can be massively adopted, they have to be widely approved.

Regulations always lag behind technology and SMRs are no exception. One of the current obstacles is information sharing, according to Kochánek. “Vendors are reluctant to share technical details needed for regulatory frameworks, due to commercial sensitivities."

At the same time, with nuclear power there is no margin for error, which makes for slow moving regulatory processes. While new technologies may be safer, power generation and nuclear waste disposal remain an inherit risk.

The Czech State Office for Nuclear Safety, which is now involved in preparing the legislation for SMR approval and evaluation, is working with other national and international nuclear regulators to exchange information and harmonise the process. The office is currently collaborating with Hungarian and Polish regulators and are part of larger international mechanisms. These include the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group, the Western European Nuclear Regulators Association, and the European Industrial Alliance on Small Modular Reactors.

Europe steps up

The European SMR Industrial Alliance, launched in 2024 by the European Commission, brings together technology developers, utilities, financial institutions, and research organisations with the task of creating a resilient supply chain. The EU has allocated €132 million to support nuclear research, focusing on safety, security, and waste management and skills. 

The ambition is to reverse a 40-year trend of nuclear disinvestment. “In Europe, we stopped nuclear investments back in the '80s," noted Cizelj. At the height of the industry in the 70s, there were close to 300 reactors in Europe. “We are down to 30 today.” Cizelj warns that if Europe doesn't ramp up its nuclear power efforts soon, it will lose know-how and become reliant on Chinese and Korean technology.

A crisis in the nuclear workforce is already on the horizon. First of all, SMRs involve new technology, so the workforce will need new skills. "It takes five years to earn a master's degree in nuclear science, but to become a professional who works independently takes up to ten,” says Kochánek. The problem is compounded by the fact that staff continue to be needed to run existing and upcoming traditional reactors.

Chirleșan estimates Romania needs 5,000 nuclear engineers in the next decade. This number exceeds the current capacity of all university training programmes. To ramp up nuclear education, 12 Romanian universities have joined forces to set up the National School for Nuclear Power. At the National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, a recent partnership with NuScale has brought a state-of-the-art SMR simulator on site for student training.

In terms of workforce, SMRs might present a slight advantage compared with traditional reactors, as they need about 60% less staff per unit of produced power because of their advanced automation and technology.

The SMR technology recently got a popularity boost from AI companies looking for large amounts of carbon-free electricity for computing power. US Department of Energy projections show AI data centres could boost energy demand by up to 20% in the next decade.