Bill Gates enters race to build mini-nuclear reactors in Britain
A company founded by Bill Gates has submitted a bid to build mini-nuclear reactors in Britain, dealing a potential blow to Rolls-Royce's hopes of dominating the domestic market.
Seattle-based TerraPower has written to the Government outlining its intention to submit its reactor design for regulatory approval.
The move kickstarts efforts by the US company to enter an increasingly competitive market to build small modular reactors (SMR), which are expected to play a key role in the UK's shift to cleaner energy.
The Microsoft billionaire's company has developed a reactor, called Natrium, that uses a molten sodium heat storage system that allows it to rapidly ramp up its power output at peak times. Natrium is the Latin word for sodium which has the chemical symbol Na.
Chris Levesque, TerraPower chief executive, said: 'I am incredibly excited to begin the process of licensing the Natrium technology in the UK.
'TerraPower is committed to deploying Natrium units globally and has been in active discussions in the UK for years. There is immense interest and opportunity for the United States and United Kingdom to cooperate on deploying advanced nuclear plants over the coming decade.'
TerraPower's bid for approval will pile further pressure on Rolls-Royce, which is vying to lead the country's development of mini-nuke technology.
The British engineering giant is already facing a battle to get its SMR project approved after ministers launched a competitive tender for the country's mini-nuke programme.
GE Hitachi, Holtec and Westinghouse have also been shortlisted alongside Rolls-Royce for the contract, with government body Great British Nuclear expected to make a final decision 'in the spring'.
Tufan Erginbilgiç, chief executive of Rolls-Royce, last month warned that Britain risked missing out in the race to develop nuclear power if ministers failed to close the process by the end of June.
While TerraPower is not involved in the competition for the UK's SMR contract, the potential entrant of a new deep-pocketed rival into the market will pose a fresh challenge to Rolls-Royce's plans.
Mr Gates co-founded TerraPower in 2006 with the aim of building reactors that will dramatically bring down the cost of nuclear power.
The company broke ground on its first site in Wyoming last year, with construction expected to be completed in five years.
TerraPower plans to use its US regulatory approvals on this maiden site as the basis of its application in the UK, which will mark the first effort to deploy Natrium technology in a global market.
The company is submitting its bid for approval through the Generic Design Assessment, a voluntary process used by nuclear regulators to assess the safety, security and environmental impact of reactor designs.
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