The first commercial contract for a grid-scale small modular reactor (SMR) in North America has been finalized. The BWRX-300 engineered by GE Hitachi will be deployed at Ontario Power Generation’s Darlington New Nuclear Project site, the only site in Canada currently licensed for a new nuclear build with an accepted environmental assessment and site preparation license.

GE Hitachi will provide the design for the 300 MW water-cooled, natural circulation boiling water reactor (BWR) with passive safety systems. The SMR leverages the design and licensing basis of the company’s U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission-certified Economic Simplified BWR. The BWRX-300 reduces scale and complexity resulting in an SMR that is smarter, safer, faster and less costly to both build and operate.

Schematic of the BWRX-300. Source: GE HitachiSchematic of the BWRX-300. Source: GE Hitachi

The construction technologies incorporated into the design adopt advanced concrete solutions and innovative techniques that have been proven in the oil and gas, tunneling and power industries. The use of modular and open-top construction techniques can enable completion of the BWRX-300 in 24 to 36 months while achieving an approximate 90% volume reduction in plant layout. Reducing the building volume by about 50% per MW should also account for 50% less concrete per MW.

The SMR project build could be completed as early as 2028.

To contact the author of this article, email shimmelstein@globalspec.com