Feds OK new small modular nuclear reactor design By EPN Staff The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved the United States’ second Small Modular Reactor design, an important step in a still fledgling sector of U.S. nuclear development. The design comes from NuScale Power, which also developed the first SMR design to win approval in 2020. The newly approved NuScale US460 is a larger SMR, capable of producing up to 460 megawatts of electricity. Approval came in “ahead of schedule and under budget,” according to the NRC, which has faced legal efforts and a push by President Donald Trump’s administration to speed up its lengthy review processes. The review took nearly two years, and NuScale said it was originally slated to wrap “later this summer.” Why it matters The United States’ plan to re-invigorate nuclear development rests largely on SMRs, which are smaller than traditional reactors and meant to be cheaper and faster to build. There aren’t any plugged into a U.S. grid yet, though. The new approval “marks a historic moment not only for NuScale, but the entire industry,” John Hopkins, NuScale President and Chief Executive Officer, said. The newer design has a higher power output than the previously approved version, which the company said will “provide a wider range of off-takers and consumers with reliable, carbon-free energy.” The bigger picture The United States has the world’s largest fleet of commercial nuclear plants, according to the Energy Information Administration, but it’s largely stagnant. A reactor at Watts Bar Tennessee and the two reactors that Georgia’s Plant Vogle opened in 2023 and 2024 were the only reactors to come online in the United States since 1996, the EIA has said. China’s fleet is growing by leaps and bounds, with 27 reactors under construction with average construction timelines of about seven years, the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation reported last year. The foundation estimates the U.S. is as many as 15 years behind China on developing high-tech nuclear power, Reuters reported last year. Additional details NuScale’s new design will be deployed through ENTRA1 Energy, which holds the global exclusive rights for distribution of NuScale’s designs. Companies wishing to use the design will still have to file applications with the NRC seeking permission to build and operate a reactor.
