Design review of small modular reactor

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) today announced that it has initiated a Vendor Design Review of its BWRX-300 small modular reactor with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC).

The Vendor Design Review is an optional service provided by the CNSC to provide early feedback to the reactor vendor during the design process with the objective of verifying, at a high level, whether a plant design meets Canadian nuclear regulatory requirements and expectations. The combined Phase 1 and 2 review by the CNSC will focus on identifying any issues that could become fundamental barriers in a licensing process for a new build project in Canada while assuring that a resolution path exists for any issues that may be identified.

The BWRX-300 leverages the design and licensing basis of the U.S. NRC-certified ESBWR. Through dramatic design simplification, GEH projects the BWRX-300 will require up to 60 percent less capital cost per MW when compared to other water-cooled SMRs or existing large nuclear reactor designs. By leveraging the ESBWR design, utilizing proven components and through simplification innovations, GEH believes that the BWRX-300 can become cost-competitive with power generation from combined cycle gas and renewables.