We are pleased to announce that SMR, LLC has awarded a conceptual design contract to The Shaw Group Inc. to help complete the first phase of the ongoing development work on HI-SMUR 140. The contract essentially provides for deploying experts from Shaw’s 4,000+ person strong cadre of nuclear professionals to work alongside Holtec’s technology developers as an integrated design team. The initial tasks being pursued by the Shaw/Holtec team involve: development of the design criteria and of the safety systems; development of the architectural layout of the plant; optimization of the Rankine cycle; and development of the plant’s cost estimate.
William F. Griffith, P.E. – Sr. VP of Nuclear Operations
Nuclear Division of Shaw’s Power Group Shaw’s executive sponsor for this undertaking is Mr. William Griffith, who has more than 40 years of experience in the nuclear industry and is Shaw’s Senior Vice President of Nuclear Operations. Commenting on the award, Mr. Griffith thanked Holtec International for “the unique opportunity to participate in the development of an advanced reactor technology that has all the hallmarks of becoming a game changer in the small nuclear reactor world.” Mr. Griffith cited the completely passive reactor and fuel pool cooling systems that do not rely on on-site or off-site power as major differentiators in the HI-SMUR technology. Reviewing HI-SMUR in the aftermath of the disaster in Japan and realizing that it is inherently capable of withstanding a cataclysmic event of Fukushima’s dimension “made him into a firm believer,” he added.
Edward J. Hubner, P.E. – Sr. VP and Director of the New Plant Program
Nuclear Division of Shaw’s Power Group Shaw has named Mr. Edward Hubner, a highly respected nuclear plant executive and Shaw’s Senior Vice President and Director of the New Plant Program, to the SMR LLC’s Expert Board of Advisors. Mr. Hubner joins an illustrious roster of the nuclear industry’s leaders who will serve as an independent advisory board on the technical, safety, and operational merits of HI-SMUR.
Pierre P. Oneid, P.Eng. – President of SMR, LLC., Senior Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer of Holtec International
SMR, LLC’s President, Mr. Pierre Oneid, welcomed Shaw into the HI-SMUR 140 program, declaring “Shaw’s six decades of commitment, support, and worldwide presence in commercial nuclear plant design, power uprate, and construction projects gives the company the depth and experience to add immeasurably to the overall quality and construction-friendliness of the generic HI-SMUR design that we are endeavoring to create.”
HI-SMUR is an innovative design embodiment: even its reactor core is a unique design. The entire fuel load is in a cartridge that it is removed during refueling and used for storage in the fuel pool and subsequently in the dry cask storage multipurpose canisters.
HI-SMUR installations around the world will have common architecture and will look similar in every corner of the globe. There will be some site-specific features, such as the low pressure (turbine exhaust) steam condensing system which, depending on the availability of water, can be of the wet or dry cooling genre, or a combination thereof.
Another distinguished contractor working on the HI-SMUR project is Britain’s National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL), tasked with optimizing the design of the reactor core to ensure leveled spatial burn up and an unconditionally stable performance.
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