Rolls-Royce submits final tender to supply nuclear power to the UK

Rolls-Royce has said it has submitted its final tender to supply mini nuclear power stations to the UK.

Following six months of detailed negotiations, Rolls-Royce SMR has put forward its final tender to Great British Nuclear.

Last year, Rolls-Royce SMR was shortlisted by GBN alongside three international nuclear technology vendors.

If selected it would see the firm manufacture ‘factory-built’ Small Modular Reactors, which would be deployed across the UK.

According to Rolls-Royce SMR, a successful outcome for the home-grown technology will be “transformational for the UK”, unlocking supply chain investment, creating thousands of long-term high-skilled jobs and generating “enormous opportunities” for growth.

Chief executive Chris Cholerton said: “I am grateful for the dedication and teamwork of everyone at Rolls-Royce SMR who has contributed to our submission.

“We have a world-class team behind a market-leading product, and I am confident we have provided a compelling offer to GBN, to partner with them in delivering the next generation of nuclear power for the UK.”

Rolls-Royce SMR has already been selected in the Czech Republic, by the leading European utility CEZ, to deliver up to 3 GW of electricity.

It has also been shortlisted by Vattenfall in its competition to select a nuclear technology for deployment in Sweden.

In the UK, Rolls-Royce SMR is currently progressing through the final stage of the assessment by the nuclear industry’s independent regulators – further ahead than any other SMR technology.

According to Rolls-Royce SMR, each of its nuclear power plants will generate enough stable low-carbon electricity to power a million homes for more than 60 years, using a “radically new approach to deploying proven nuclear technology”.