Ed Miliband must hurry with mini-nukes as Rolls-Royce narrows the shortlist
Ed Miliband is under pressure to speed up the rollout of mini nuclear weapons in Britain after the government put together a shortlist of companies vying to take the project forward.
The Energy Secretary has been urged to move faster to approve small modular reactors (SMRs), which are cheaper and faster to build than large nuclear power stations, amid fears Britain is falling behind.
The calls come after Rolls-Royce was named along with three rivals for the next phase of the competition to develop mini nuclear weapons in Britain.
American company NuScale was eliminated this week, while French giant EDF withdrew.
Energy security: Energy Secretary Ed Miliband (pictured) has been urged to take faster action to approve small modular nuclear reactors
Companies were initially told the shortlist would be reduced to four by the end of August, but the election delayed this.
The raid has fueled fears that Britain is continuing to lag behind. Rolls-Royce was last week chosen by the Czech Republic as the preferred supplier of SMRs for the state energy group CEZ.
The Mail on Sunday subsequently revealed that Rolls was also in talks with Sweden and the Netherlands.
Shadow Energy Minister Claire Coutinho said: ‘It is clear that Labor does not place the same emphasis on nuclear energy as the Conservatives.
‘You can’t build an energy policy based only on wind and solar power, as Ed Miliband seems to want to do, so he must move faster to ensure other countries don’t steal a march on Britain when it comes to the next generation energy companies. nuclear.’
Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, said: ‘Other countries continue to choose their technologies and we must also move at pace, and that includes selecting the locations and number of units so we can be sure provide the supply chain and for the host communities.
“We look forward to seeing rapid progress on SMRs and large-scale projects in the coming months.”
Rolls-Royce communications spokesman Dan Gould last week urged Labor to act faster. “We would like to see the government make a decision by the end of the year,” he said.
The company has been shortlisted by Vattenfall, the Swedish multinational energy company, to meet the rising demand for electricity.
In the Netherlands, Rolls-Royce has signed an exclusive agreement with the Dutch development company ULC-Energy to collaborate on the deployment of SMRs.
Rolls is awaiting approval from the governments of both countries.
US-Japanese alliance GE-Hitachi and US firms Westinghouse and Holtec are still competing in the British design competition, which was first announced in 2015 by then-Chancellor George Osborne.
It wasn’t until 2023 that government agency Great British Nuclear launched the official design competition.
Six contenders were announced in October 2023 and bids were submitted in July. It is hoped that a winner will be selected later this year or early 2025.
A spokesperson for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said: ‘We are reversing the legacy of no new nuclear energy being supplied, ensuring the long-term security of the nuclear sector.
‘SMRs will play an important role in helping Britain achieve energy security and clean energy, while securing thousands of good, skilled jobs.
‘Four companies, confirmed by Great British Nuclear, will move into the next phase of the small modular reactor competition and will be invited to enter into negotiations.’
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