The Americans from NuScale expect the Doicești SMR power plant to have a final investment decision next year

Small modular reactor (SMR) developer NuScale is continuing to work on a proposed 462-megawatt power plant in Romania, a project that could reach the final investment decision stage early next year, NuScale executives said.

NuScale Power is in advanced discussions with several potential customers for its SMR technology and could deliver an operational power plant in 2030, “if we close a deal soon,” CEO John Hopkins said Monday during a first-quarter earnings call, according to industry sources. The company said in a press release that it remains on track to receive U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approval in July for its updated 77-megawatt small modular reactor (SMR) design. Manufacturing partner Doosan currently has 12 NuScale modules in the works and could deliver 20 per year as orders come in, Hopkins said. NuScale envisions deployments with 4, 6 or 12 modules, with total capacities ranging from 308 MWe to 924 MWe.

NuScale is continuing initial engineering work as a subcontractor for Fluor Corporation’s 462 MWe plant project in Romania, but has not yet finalized an agreement of its own to supply modules. That could change soon, Hopkins suggested on Monday, noting a planned visit next month with executives from a potential customer to Doosan’s module forging plant in South Korea. “We are currently focused on finalizing short-term contracts. We are no longer pursuing collaborative protocols,” he said. “We are in the process of submitting and negotiating contract terms. We have customers who want to … ‘touch the steel,’” he said.

Potential customers for initial power deliveries include large data center operators, other heavy industrial customers and utilities, NuScale said in a statement. Any deal will involve multiple parties, said CFO Ramsey Hamady. The buyer of the modules will likely be a power plant operator, working with an end-user, likely a “leading data center or AI developer.” Other deals could include a site operator such as a utility, financial partners and NuScale’s exclusive power plant development partner, ENTRA1.

The company reiterated its “confidence in a firm order by the end of 2025.” The company has “several sources of revenue,” including pre-engineering work for the Romanian project, but a committed power plant project would positively change the company’s financial outlook, company officials said. NuScale expects to record about 25% of its revenue from module sales in the first year of a contract — enough to be cash-flow positive.

Ramsey Hamady, NuScale’s CFO, warned that getting more orders in the first year could be a challenge, given the current constraints on the nuclear supply chain, but the problem would not be insurmountable. “Once we have that first contract, I think we’ll see more money being invested in the supply chain to increase capacity,” he said. “We’ll be in a great position if the biggest challenge is keeping up with the orders.”

The Romanian project

The Doicești nuclear power plant would be equipped with six small modular reactors (SMRs) with technology developed by NuScale, with a total capacity of 462 MW, on the site of the former coal-fired power plant, which was initially purchased by Nova Power and Gas, controlled by businessman Teofil Mureșan, who entered into a partnership with Nuclearelectrica in RoPower Nuclear to develop the project. The plant would be completed after 2030, and the costs are not yet known.

“For SMRs, we are in FEED 2, so it is the detailed study stage and, in an optimistic calendar, at the end of the year, if not, somewhere during next year, we will have all the necessary data to make the final investment decision. So, we will know exactly how much it costs, who the possible partners are, who is putting up the money and to what extent Romania can take this project to the end. And that is where Fluor is involved. NuScale is the American technology majority owned by the Fluor company. It is a Texas company, very solid and, by the way, these collaborations were started in the first Trump administration. So, I think we will have the support of the American side”, said Energy Minister Sebastian Burduja in early March.

Last year, on July 24, SN Nuclearelectrica SA and RoPower Nuclear announced the signing of the Front-End Engineering and Design Phase 2 (FEED 2) contract of the contract with Fluor Corporation.

The collaboration between Nuclearelectrica, RoPower Nuclear, Nova Power & Gas (part of the E-INFRA group), Fluor, Samsung C&T Corporation and Sargent & Lundy will facilitate the development and implementation of NuScale small modular reactor (SMR) plants in Romania, leveraging the expertise of these companies in the field of nuclear energy. According to the FEED phase 2 contract, Fluor is committed to providing RoPower Nuclear with the design and engineering services necessary for the implementation of the SMR Doiceşti nuclear project, according to a press release from SNN, submitted to the Bucharest Stock Exchange at the time.

At the end of the FEED 2 phase, Romania will have an updated cost estimate for the project, an updated project schedule, as well as the design and all nuclear safety and security analyses related to the project, necessary for the final investment decision. The SMR plant using NuScale technology will generate almost 200 permanent jobs at the plant, 1,500 jobs during the construction phase and 2,300 jobs in production. The Doiceşti SMR power plant will help Romania avoid 4 million tons of CO2 emissions per year.