The biggest public power utilities in the United States and Canada are joining to help explore how to develop and build smaller nuclear reactors they say will be needed to meet the growing demand for carbon-free electricity.
The Tennessee Valley Authority and Ontario Power Generation announced the partnership Tuesday to help develop small modular reactors to replace some of the coal- and natural gas-fired power generators the utilities plan to completely phase out in the future to achieve a carbon-free power portfolio.
The agreement allows TVA and the Ontario, Canada, utility to coordinate their explorations into the design, licensing, construction and operation of the GE Hitachi BWRX design for standardized reactors.
“As leaders in our industry and nations, OPG and TVA share a common goal to decarbonize energy generation while maintaining reliability and low-cost service, which our customers expect and deserve,” Jeff Lyash, TVA president and CEO, said in an announcement during a Nuclear Energy Institute conference in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday. “Advanced nuclear technology will not only help us meet our net-zero carbon targets but will also advance North American energy security.”
Lyash, who was formerly CEO of Ontario Power before joining TVA in 2019, said the collaboration should help reduce the development and startup costs for each utility while helping to ensure the standardization that could help lower the production and installation expenses for much of the factory-built equipment in the new and smaller reactor design.