Final Investment Decision taken for Romanian SMR project

Romania's small modular reactor (SMR) project is aiming for 462 MWe installed capacity, using NuScale technology with six modules at the former coal plant site at Doicești - about 90 kilometres northwest of Bucharest - each with an installed capacity of 77 MWe. The SMR project is estimated to create nearly 200 permanent jobs, 1,500 construction jobs and 2,300 manufacturing and component assembly jobs, as well as facility operation and maintenance jobs over the 60-year life of the facility.

Bogdan Ivan, Romania's Minister of Energy, said: "The Final Investment Decision for the SMR project in Doicești marks the transition from the analysis phase to the implementation phase, consolidating Romania's position at the forefront of the new European nuclear industry. We are replacing 600 MW from a former thermal power plant with 462 MW of clean, stable, and predictable energy.

"Over the next six months, the project will enter a phase of financial structuring and partnership consolidation, during which financing mechanisms will be defined and discussions with potential investors for the execution phase will be advanced. The Doicești project is about Romania building, producing, and consolidating its position in Europe."

According to Reuters, Romania's Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan was asked about the project cost on radio station Europa FM on Friday, saying: "As I remember it is a fairly big sum, USD6-USD$7 billion and the business plan must also account for how the energy will be consumed. The investment will be made once a funding formula will be found. Given the very large amount of money, the complexity of such projects and the technology being in early days, I estimate we will not see the investment immediately."

In December the energy ministry said that after "discussions with the project company's shareholders, the solution for the full financing of the current development stage" had been identified and that "based on the conclusions of the feasibility study, we will open the project to investors". It also said it was exploring the possibility of developing further SMR projects in Romania.

Cosmin Ghiță, CEO of Nuclearelectrica, which is 82% state-owned, said the SMR project meant Romania was positioning itself "on the international map of the nuclear industry, through know-how and the development of the supply chain, at a stage in the energy transition where, globally and in Europe, modular reactors are a solution for ensuring energy security and independence".

Project company RoPower Nuclear - owned jointly by Nuclearelectrica and Nova Power & Gas, which is part of E-INFRA - said that it would, by May, complete geotechnical investigations; continue the licensing process; finalise the pre-EPC (engineering, procurement, construction) contract negotiations; negotiate contracts for long-lead items; define supply chains for materials and equipment; and prepare the organisation for the pre-EPC and the EPC phases.

The following stage of the project, the pre-EPC phase, is expected to last about 15 months and will aim to deliver an: estimated Class 2 budget; identification of contractors; and a contractual structure for agreements such as the pre-EPC Agreement, extension of the technology license agreement with NuScale; and environmental impact assessment agreements.

Nuclearelectrica said: "In parallel with these technical steps, efforts will continue in the coming period to structure the investment and financial framework of the project in preparation for the execution phase."

Valentin Ovidiu Nae, CEO of RoPower Nuclear, said: "The Doicești project means 60 years of clean energy ... [and] is an opportunity for Romania to demonstrate once again that it is at the forefront of energy production using nuclear technology."

Teofil Mureșan, Founder and Chairman of E-INFRA, said: "We are proud to be part of this project with our company, Nova Power & Gas, and I am convinced that together with our American partners we will find solutions to make the project a technical and economic success."

The proposed timeline looks to be for the first module to be in commercial operation in 2033.

The background

The partnership between the USA and Romania on SMRs began in March 2019 with a memorandum of understanding between state-owned nuclear power corporation Nuclearelectrica and NuScale to study potential developments. In 2021, NuScale and Nuclearelectrica signed a teaming agreement to deploy a NuScale VOYGR-6 power plant in Romania by the end of the decade. In June 2022, the two companies signed a memorandum of understanding to begin conducting engineering studies, technical reviews, and licensing and permitting activities for the project.

NuScale Power and RoPower Nuclear - owned jointly by Nuclearelectrica and Nova Power & Gas - completed Phase 1 of a Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) study in late 2023, which analysed the preferred site of the first VOYGR-6 SMR power plant. The FEED 2 study has also been completed - this saw Fluor Corporation provide RoPower Nuclear with the design and engineering services required for the implementation of the project, including an updated cost estimate and schedule as well as the safety and security analyses needed for the final investment decision.

The US Export-Import (Exim) Bank approved in 2024 a USD98 million loan for pre-project services, and the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) and Exim also issued Letters of Interest for potential support of up to USD1 billion and USD3 billion, respectively, for project deployment.