Hyundai E&C, along with U.S.-based Holtec International, signed a business agreement for jointly participating in the U.K. Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA)’s SMR technology competition with U.K.-based Balfour Beatty and Mott MacDonald at the Korean Embassy in London of the United Kingdom on March 5.
Through this agreement, Hyundai E&C and Holtec plan to submit bids for the UKAEA’s SMR technology project, increase market competitiveness for the final investment selection of SMR deployment in the United Kingdom, and forge strategic partnerships for the deployment of the first SMR reactor in the future.
The UK Atomic Energy Authority is a government agency established to support nuclear power generation programs and expand nuclear power generation capacities to 24 GW by 2050, declaring a grand revival of the nuclear power industry. Six SMR developers, including Holtec, are on the shortlist. The construction of the U.K.’s first SMR is expected to begin in earnest in 2030, once a decision to invest in the selected SMR technology is finally made in 2029 after a technical design tender.
Hyundai E&C and Holtec signed a cooperation agreement in 2021 to jointly develop SMRs and enter the SMR business together. Since then, they have been working on projects across nuclear power value chains including the design of the first SMR unit in the United States as well as nuclear power plant decommissioning projects and the construction of storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel.
In 2022, along with Balfour Beatty, Hyundai E&C and Holtec were selected to participate in the Future Nuclear Enabling Fund (FNEF) to rev up the U.K.’s nuclear power plants. The three are expanding its global footprints by focusing on co-developing global nuclear projects including SMR projects in Eastern Europe.
Balfour Beatty is a leading U.K. construction company working on a range of nuclear projects including the offshore construction of Hinkley Point C Nuclear Power Station, Sellafield and Wylfa. Mott MacDonald is a global engineering company with more than 50 years of experience in the nuclear sector with particular expertise in nuclear site assessment and advice on licenses and permits in the United Kingdom. It successfully completed Barakah Nuclear Power Plant with Hyundai E&C in the UAE.
Based on this agreement, Hyundai E&C will expand the foundation of its SMR business in the United Kingdom and further solidify its foundation for the global SMR business based on its unrivaled technical capabilities and strong mutual trust.