A key goal for the U.S. government support for SMRs needs to be improving the domestic and international commercialization outlook for the industry. SMR LTS program management is continuing to work with US utilities and the international community through public forums and focused interactions aimed at better understanding the barriers that the industry perceives are preventing the widespread deployment of SMRs and coming up with actions that will help to remove these barriers.
Title: Workshop "Pathway to Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Commercialization" June 2016
Objective: Determination of an optimum set of public-private partnership activities that could achieve the goal of ensuring successful SMR deployments in the next decade through a collaborative industry-focused workshop. Specifically we were interested in two areas: (1) manufacturing technologies to reduce cost and schedule for SMR parts and components and meet the demands of the industry as it grows; and (2) additional SMR capabilities beyond baseload electricity generation, including use of SMRs in hybrid energy systems and in meeting national security needs.
Result: The discussions helped, and will continue to help, inform DOE’s future program plans to support the development of a domestic SMR industry with the ultimate goal of positioning U.S. SMRs to succeed.
Report: SMR Commercialization Workshop Final Report October 2016
Impact: The continuing maturation of SMR technologies is integral to promoting the Administration’s “all of the above” energy strategy, contributing towards meeting national climate and clean energy goals, and facilitating U.S. industrial competitiveness.
Title: Update EPRI Light Water Reactor Utility Requirements Document (URD) to Incorporate SMR Characteristics
Completion Date: December 2014
Objective: Develop a clear, common and consistent understanding of owner-operator requirements to enable successful and sustainable commercialization of light-water SMRs.
Result: An expansion of the URD to address small LWR technologies. Specifically, the revised URD content formed the basis for a revision of the EPRI URD. Resulted in very few substantial changes (~3%), including establishing emphasis on source term supporting EPZ reduction, extending planned plant life to 60 years, and establishing a plant availability target of 95%.
Impact: Created a long-term standardized and comprehensive set of requirements and will serve as a basis for technology evaluations and identification of general SMR Research & Development needs.
Title: Wall Street (Financial) Perspectives on New Nuclear Generation (Surveys)
Completion Date: Annually 2013, 2014, 2015
Objective: Provide a systematic and in-depth collection of insight from the investment community, typically a broad cross section of over 50 Wall Street commercial and investment bankers, rating agencies, institutional investors, and specialty investors, across a range of electric generation technologies and policy issues, including nuclear energy include specific questions addressing SMRs, to better understanding the market.
Result: The 2013 survey results regarding SMRs were dominated by uncertainty relative to community understanding of the economic viability of SMRs, and indicated that there may be value in further engagement with the community to educate and inform on SMRs. Recurrent themes in the 2014 survey included concerns regarding cheap and plentiful natural gas, weak electrical demand growth, the fact that renewables are major players, a minimal antinuclear sentiment, and increasing pressure on coal as a baseload energy source.
2013 Wall Street Perspective on SMRs
2014 Wall Street Perspective on SMRs
2014 Wall Street Perspectives on SMRs (report)
2015 Wall Street Perspectives on SMRs
Impact: Provides DOE insight into energy investment community perspective and may provide ideas on how DOE can educate and help to shape their thinking, possibly positively impacting the availability of funding for potential SMR owners.
Title: Business Case for Small Modular Reactors, Report on Findings
Completion Date: October 2014
Objective: To perform a market analysis and identify steps that might be taken to improve the commercialization potential for SMRs, including considering changes in policies, programs, and incentives that would promote the deployment of SMRs both domestically and internationally.
Result: Study showed that although there are barriers to implementing the SMR technology today, namely economic conditions in the electricity market, there is a potentially willing domestic and international market for SMRs that will be stimulated and improved by a combination of Government incentives, program investments, and policy development and implementation which will help SMRs to be competitive with other current generation technologies.
Impact: The project’s financial model will be used to understand the magnitude of the incentives that would be needed to cause a measurable impact on the project economics.
Title: Nuclear Energy Standards Coordination Collaboration Activities
Completion Date: Complete
Objective: This was a joint DOE/NIST/NRC/Industry-funded effort to identify and develop industry standards (ANS, ASME, IEEE, ASTM, etc.) that would be advantageous to new nuclear power plants, including the current iPWR SMR designs.
Result: The committee identified new standards necessary to support current light water designs and other advanced reactors such as Sodium Fast Reactors.
Impact: Most of the efforts of this committee focused on standards that are generic to the nuclear industry, such as advanced concrete standards.