Doosan Enerbility (034020) said Tuesday it has been selected as a strategic partner for manufacturing key components for a small modular reactor (SMR) project led by Britain’s Rolls-Royce SMR. The deal is seen as a foothold for entering the European SMR market.
Founded in 2021, Rolls-Royce SMR is an SMR developer majority-owned by British aerospace and defense company Rolls-Royce PLC. The firm is developing a 470-megawatt SMR capable of supplying power continuously for more than 60 years.
Under the partnership, Doosan Enerbility will conduct manufacturability reviews for key components, including reactors, that will be deployed in Rolls-Royce SMR’s projects at Wylfa in the U.K. and Temelin in the Czech Republic. The reviews verify whether designed products can actually be built and serve as a vetting step before entrusting Doosan Enerbility with full-scale component production.
In April, Rolls-Royce SMR signed a contract with Great British Energy – Nuclear (GBE-N) and began site-specific design work for three SMRs to be built at Wylfa. In the Czech Republic, the company signed a construction preparation contract with state-run utility CEZ and is pursuing site licensing and preliminary design work.
“The partnership with Rolls-Royce SMR will be an important opportunity for Doosan Enerbility to expand its role in the global SMR supply chain,” said Kim Jong-doo, president of Doosan Enerbility’s Nuclear Business Group. “We will actively support Rolls-Royce SMR’s business based on our accumulated experience and technological capabilities in manufacturing main nuclear components.”
Doosan Enerbility is building an SMR-dedicated factory at its headquarters site in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, to strengthen its SMR business competitiveness. The company also plans to enhance its capabilities for producing key SMR components by adopting innovative manufacturing technologies such as powder metal hot isostatic pressing (PM-HIP).
Doosan Enerbility won an SMR component order from U.S.-based TerraPower in the first quarter and is expanding cooperation with other global SMR firms including X-energy and NuScale Power.
“As projects pursued by partner companies take concrete shape, Doosan Enerbility is investing in a dedicated production facility capable of manufacturing 20 SMRs per year,” said Lee Sang-heon, an analyst at iM Securities. “Given Doosan Enerbility’s manufacturing capabilities, it is highly likely to expand SMR component supply to companies such as GE Hitachi as well.”