The first Energy Exploration Centre (E2 Centre) to run the NuScale small modular reactor (SMR) simulator in Europe was inaugurated Friday at Politehnica University of Bucharest.
This is a national project and represents an energy revolution, said Nuclearelectrica President Cosmin Ghita.
“We will have more clean electricity. A successful nuclear programme is not only about technology and successful technology, it is not only about software and equipment, it is about well-trained people and human resources that can make a programme successful or not,” said Ghita.
The simulator will help Romania become a centre for SMR technology in the region and beyond, as well as a base for supporting the operation of this new technology in other countries, the US ambassador Kathleen Kavalec said.
According to the diplomat, SMR plants offer a flexible, scalable and cost-effective solution that can complement renewables and provide clean energy in harder-to-reach areas.
Energy Minister Virgil Popescu said that these modular reactors are needed to have a stable energy system.
The E2 Centre, developed as part of the Foundational Infrastructure for Responsible Use of Small Modular Reactor Technology (FIRST) programme, a US Government initiative, will contribute to Romania’s goals of becoming a leader in the safe implementation of small modular reactors in Romania and Europe, as well as a hub for education and training of SMR specialists in the region.
In May 2022, Nuclearelectrica, NuScale and E-Infra, the site’s owner, signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the development of the first Small Modular Reactor (SMR) in Romania on the site of the former Doicesti Thermal Power Plant, Dambovita County.
On 27 June 2022, on the occasion of the launch of the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, presented at the G7 Leaders’ Summit, US President Joe Biden announced the allocation of a $14 million grant for the small modular reactor development phase in Romania by NuScale – Preliminary Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) study for the SMR project in Romania.
US company NuScale Power and Romanian company RoPower Nuclear have signed the contract for Phase 1 of the Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) work for Romania’s first small modular nuclear reactor.
(Cătălina Mihai | EURACTIV.ro)
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