Holtec is pleased to report that Hyundai Engineering and Construction (HDEC) concluded a week-long workshop at Holtec’s Krishna P. Singh Technology Campus in Camden, New Jersey last week to advance the SMR-160 Balance of Plant Design. This meeting was part of ongoing work following the signing of the Teaming Agreement last November (HH 36.15).
The week included a visit to the former Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station for a site walkdown; the site is owned by a Holtec subsidiary company and is under active decommissioning by Holtec Decommissioning International. Oyster Creek will be used as one of several reference sites for completion of the SMR-160 “Standard Design,”which is being completed for a wide range of site environmental parameters to make it generally deployable at a generic site.
Although Oyster Creek has not been designated as a commercial project at this time, Holtec remains open to possibly deploying its first SMR-160 at the Oyster Creek site pending local and state support in consideration of the state’s ambitious goal to have 100 percent carbon-neutral electricity generation by 2050, as outlined in the New Jersey Energy Master Plan.
Holtec’s Advanced Manufacturing Division (AMD) at the Camden campus is designed to produce Holtec’s SMR-160 reactor and is located only two hours away from the Oyster Creek site. AMD is already producing nuclear-grade components destined for both domestic and international markets. Holtec envisions that additional investment in fabrication capacity will be necessary to meet future orders for the SMR-160.
Deployment of the first SMR-160 in the United States will unlock the international export market, where clients generally require a reference plant in the supplier’s home country before placing their own orders. Additionally, the “first-mover” states stand to benefit the most in terms of economic development, considering the investment and supply chain development in executing the first SMR-160 project. The first reference plant is also expected to serve as a hub for international visitors as follow-on projects abroad come to benchmark the reference site. The energy produced from SMR-160 will further serve as a reliable contribution to the Federal Government and broader industry commitments to purchase 24/7 clean energy, attracting additional investment in the region.
The meetings with HDEC were a great success and resulted in definitive steps forward toward the standard design completion milestone in 2023. Holtec continues discussions with numerous interested parties for the first commercial deployment in the United States and abroad. Holtec has initiated the licensing process for the SMR-160 with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission with the goal of securing a site construction license in 2025. To support the development of the SMR-160, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) awarded a grant valued at $147.5 million (DOE share is $116 million with Holtec’s investment share being $31.5 million) in 2020.
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