Aerospace giant Rolls-Royce to build Britain's first small modular nuclear reactors
British aerospace group Rolls-Royce on Tuesday received backing from the U.K. government to build the country's first small modular nuclear reactors.
The announcement follows a two-year selection process and reaffirms Britain's embrace of nuclear power, particularly as it also pledged on Tuesday to invest £14.2 billion ($19.2 billion) to build the large Sizewell C power station in eastern England.
U.K. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said plans to build the country's first-ever small modular reactors (SMRs) would create thousands of jobs, support regional economies and strengthen energy security.
"We are ending the no-nuclear status quo as part of our Plan for Change and are entering a golden age of nuclear with the biggest building programme in a generation," Miliband said.
Britain's center-left Labour government said the plans could support up to 3,000 jobs and power the equivalent of 3 million homes once the SMRs are connected to the grid in the mid-2030s.
Rolls Royce welcomed the decision from Britain's state-owned energy company, Great British Energy - Nuclear, saying it represents a "very significant milestone" for the business and Rolls-Royce SMR.
"It is a vote of confidence in our unique nuclear capabilities, which will be recognised by governments around the world," Rolls-Royce CEO Tufan Erginbilgic said in a statement.
"It is also evidence that the strategic choices we have made in the transformation of Rolls-Royce are delivering," he added.
Shares of Rolls Royce rose more than 2% on the news, notching a fresh 52-week high.
The U.K. government said it intends to sign a contract with Rolls-Royce SMR and allocate a site later this year, subject to regulatory approval.
SMRs promise to have smaller and lighter footprints than traditional plants, potentially making them cheaper and quicker to build when they are fully commercialized.
Amazon and Google both signed deals last year to develop SMRs in the U.S. as tech giants increasingly turn to nuclear to fulfill the growing energy demands from data centers.
As it is low-carbon, advocates argue that nuclear power has the potential to play a significant role in helping countries generate electricity while slashing emissions and reducing their reliance on fossil fuels.
Some environmental groups, however, warn the nuclear industry is an expensive and harmful distraction to cheaper and cleaner alternatives.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hypebeast
40 minutes ago
- Hypebeast
TAG Heuer Unveils Special Edition Goodwood Festival of Speed Carrera Chronograph
Summary TAG Heueris marking its return as the Official Timing Partner of the 2025Goodwood Festival of Speedwith a new limited-edition timepiece: the TAG HeuerCarreraChronograph x Festival of Speed. Designed to honor the deep ties between British motorsport culture and the Swiss brand's rich racing legacy, the watch channels vintage aesthetics with cutting-edge mechanics. Housed in a 42mm steel case, the chronograph features a rich green clou de Paris dial inspired by Goodwood Green, accented with red touches and a brown perforated leather rally strap reminiscent of 1970s racing gloves. Under the hood is TAG Heuer's in-house calibre TH20-00 automatic movement, offering chronograph functionality, date display and a 100-meter water resistance. The sapphire case back displays the Goodwood Festival of Speed logo and is individually engraved 'XXX of 100,' marking its exclusivity. Initially offered to Goodwood Road Racing Club members, only 100 pieces of this Carrera will be produced. TAG Heuer CEO Antoine Pin emphasized that the watch is not just a timepiece, but a cultural tribute to motorsport's past and future. The Duke of Richmond, founder of Goodwood Festival of Speed, praised TAG Heuer's enduring connection to racing history, calling the collaboration a 'shared passion realized.' The watch will be available to the public starting June 2025, perfectly timed for enthusiasts converging in West Sussex to celebrate 75 years ofFormula 1heritage.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Morning Bid: So, it's a framework for a deal, maybe?
(Reuters) -A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Wayne Cole. So, apparently, they have the concept of a plan for a proposal on a framework for a deal to break the latest U.S.-China trade impasse. Which was only needed because President Trump sent that tweet claiming Beijing had broken the old deal. This deal now needs to be approved by Trump and Chairman Xi, and then implemented. At least the Chinese side thought the talks were "rational", which was a step forward. Details were scant, though the U.S. team did claim that it would resolve China's export restrictions on rare earth minerals and magnets. What Beijing got in return was not yet clear. Neither was it clear whether this truce would last any longer than the last one, which might be why the early market response was less than enthusiastic. U.S. and European stock futures were all down between 0.2% and 0.6%, and Asian shares modestly firmer. There is still the small matter of whether the April 2 levies are actually legal, with a federal appeals court allowing the tariffs to remain in effect while it reviews a lower court decision blocking them. The dollar and Treasuries were little changed as the U.S. CPI looms later in the day and any upside surprise would fan stagflationary fears, to the detriment of both markets. Analysts assume lower energy prices will keep the headline rise to 0.2%, while the core is seen up 0.3%. Attention will be on whether tariffs show up in goods prices, though the full impact is likely to appear from June onwards. Measures of volatility suggest investors really aren't prepared for a high number, so anything in line will be a relief. Treasuries also have a 10-year auction to weather, with the focus on the share taken by indirect bidders which include foreign central banks. The latter took a hefty 71% of the May sale, while primary dealers got just 8.9%. A repeat performance would be warmly welcomed. Key developments that could influence markets on Wednesday: * ECB wage tracker. Appearances by ECB council membersGabriel Makhlouf; Piero Cipollone; Philip Lane and Claudia Buch;policymaker Yiannis Stournaras * British finance minister Rachel Reeves releases spendingreview * U.S. CPI data for May (By Wayne Cole; Editing by Christopher Cushing) Sign in to access your portfolio
CNBC
2 hours ago
- CNBC
Dollar holds steady after U.S., China reach framework deal to ease export curbs
The dollar was steady against its major peers on Wednesday, after U.S. and China agreed on a framework for a trade agreement that investors hoped could potentially pave the way to resolving a damaging trade war between the world's two largest economies. In early Asia trading, the dollar was down 0.14% against the Japanese yen at 144.770, and slipped 0.13% against the Swiss franc to last change hands at 0.8218. The euro was flat at $1.1427, while China's offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1881 per dollar. An index that measures the greenback against six other currencies was little changed and was last at 99.068. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that U.S. and Chinese officials concluded keenly watched talks in London that lasted for two days and agreed to put their trade truce reached last month in Geneva back on track. The framework included resolving China's export restrictions on rare earth minerals and magnets, and will also remove some U.S. export restrictions that were recently put in place. "The devil is going to be in the details and importantly whether this can help to reestablish trust between President Xi and President Trump, which has clearly been broken since the Geneva Agreement was published," said Ray Attrill, head of FX strategy at National Australia Bank. "But it's way too early to say that we know we're in the midst of establishing a cast iron, new U.S.-China trade agreement." Much of the year has been dominated by investors fretting over the likelihood that U.S. President Donald Trump's erratic policies could tip the U.S. economy into a recession, and in turn hurt global growth. The erosion of investor confidence in U.S. assets has severely undermined the dollar, which is down more than 8% so far this year. Later in the day, investors will closely parse a U.S. consumer inflation report that could reflect the economic impact of tariffs on prices, potentially determining the trajectory of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy for the rest of the year. The Fed is expected to hold rates steady next week, with traders pricing in nearly two 25-basis-point cuts by the end of the year. UK's sterling was marginally higher at $1.35 as markets awaited British finance minister Rachel Reeves' public spending plans. The currency came under pressure overnight after data pointed to a weak labor market.
