EDF Plans to Deploy 10 Small Nuclear Reactors in Europe by 2035

en.Wedoany.com Reported - Électricité de France (EDF) plans to build 10 small modular reactors (SMRs) across the European Union by 2035, aiming to help the EU reduce its dependence on fossil fuel imports.

These units will use EDF's Nuward small reactor technology, with a single unit capacity of approximately 400 megawatts, bringing the total installed capacity of the 10 units to about 4 gigawatts. EDF aims to keep the cost of electricity generation at around 100 euros per megawatt-hour, providing industrial users with price-competitive low-carbon electricity and heat.

In terms of layout, the first 10 units will be distributed across France, Italy, Poland, Belgium, and Finland, with the first unit expected to be located in France. In Italy, companies including Edison, Saipem, Webuild, Ansaldo, and Maire will participate in the construction of the related industrial chain; the Italian side plans to first gain engineering experience by participating in Europe's first batch of projects, and then apply its technology and supply chain capabilities to domestic nuclear power projects.

Italian Minister of Environment and Energy Security Gilberto Pichetto Fratin previously stated that Italy's first batch of newly built nuclear reactors is expected to be commissioned between 2034 and 2035. However, the official implementation of nuclear power projects still requires an improved legal framework. The "Sustainable Nuclear Energy" authorization bill passed by Italy's Chamber of Deputies in June is still under review in the Senate. The bill will authorize the government to formulate new regulations on nuclear facility siting, approval procedures, safety standards, and radioactive waste management.

Small modular reactors have not yet entered the stage of large-scale commercial production, but dozens of companies worldwide are racing to advance the technology toward deployment. Compared with traditional large nuclear power units, small reactors offer greater flexibility in deployment methods, application scenarios, and low-carbon energy supply, and are regarded as targeted power supply solutions for power-intensive industries such as metallurgy and data centers.