Small Modular Reactor (LWR-SMR)
Light Water (small) family · Generation III+ / IV · Pre-commercial / first units
Reactors under ~300 MWe built in a factory and shipped to site. The bet is that series production and lower up-front capital beat the economies of scale of large plants — still unproven commercially.
How it works — schematic
🚧 Diagram in progress Simplified schematic for orientation, not an engineering drawing — we're actively refining these for accuracy.
Key specs
- Coolant
- Water
- Moderator
- Water
- Fuel
- Low-enriched UO₂ / HALEU
- Spectrum
- Thermal
- Outlet temp
- ~300 °C
- Status
- Pre-commercial / first units
Real-world examples
- • NuScale (design certified; lead project cancelled 2023)
- • GE BWRX-300
- • Rolls-Royce SMR
Strengths
- + Lower up-front capital
- + Factory build quality
- + Sited flexibly
- + Passive safety
Trade-offs
- – Loses economy of scale
- – First-of-a-kind cost risk
- – Unproven supply chain