The £170m AMR demonstration programme aims to explore the potential for AMRs to play a part in the UK’s energy future; it will be delivered by the early 2030s. it is part of a larger £385m package to accelerate the development of more flexible nuclear technologies.
AMRs – of which there are six main categories – are smaller than typical nuclear reactors and designed such that sections can be fabricated in a factory environment and transported to site, significantly lowering risk and cost. Some AMRs could re-use spent nuclear materials as new fuel.
The government hopes AMRs could, by the 2040s, produce hydrogen and heat for heavy industry in addition to low-carbon electricity for the grid.
More than a third (37 per cent) of UK carbon emissions are derived from heat, with a significant proportion from heavy industrial processes. HTGRs could generate heat between 500 and 950°C: significantly higher than other types of AMR. This would make them a powerful...