Slovak nuclear power engineering and services company VUJE has signed an agreement with UK-based start-up newcleo to establish closer cooperation in the development of advanced modular reactor (AMR) technologies and advanced fuel cycle solutions in the Slovak Republic.
The aim of the agreement is to promote closer cooperation with a focus on newcleo’s lead-cooled fast reactor (LFR) technology. The aim is also to explore the possibilities of reusing existing used nuclear fuel in Slovakia in LFRs to close the nuclear fuel cycle.
Newcleo aims to commission a 30 MWe lead-cooled fast reactor (LFR 30) by 2030 in France, as well as a pilot unit for the manufacture and multi-recycling of mixed oxide (mox) fuel for fast reactors. Following the construction of the LFR-30 and mox plant in, newcleo plans to construct a 200 MWe first-of-a-kind commercial unit (LFR-AS-200) in the UK by 2033.
Specific areas of cooperation with VUJE may include an assessment for the deployment of LFR technology in Slovakia; review of fuel cycle solutions for the potential reuse of used nuclear fuel reserves in Slovakia; cooperation on research and development activities; development of skills and capabilities in the field of advanced nuclear technologies; and building on the experience and development work of VUJE in the field of high-temperature reactors and reuse of used fuel from VVER-440 reactors.
“VUJE is one of the key companies in the field of nuclear energy. Our goal is to work with VUJE to further develop advanced nuclear reactors that can use spent nuclear fuel,” said newcleo CEO Stefano Buono. “This cooperation agreement could further accelerate our research and development and engineering activities in Europe. I am convinced that this cooperation can bring us closer to advanced nuclear reactors as a model solution for many European countries, to be able to effectively decarbonise their electricity generation and obtain a sustainable solution for their spent fuel reserves.”
Matej Korec, CEO of VUJE, said, as a leader in the Slovak market in the field of nuclear energy and services, VUJE is interested in cooperating in the further development of state-of-the-art nuclear technologies. “We believe that advanced modular reactor technologies and fuel cycle closure have great potential for the future of nuclear energy in Slovakia and Europe. We hope that by participating in the development of newcleo, we will help make these technologies available as soon as possible.”
The agreement is the first to be concluded by newcleo’s recently established Slovak subsidiary, newccleo sro. Newcleo has been actively communicating with key actors in the Slovak nuclear industry and government since 2023. In December 2023, it signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic and the Nuclear & Decommissioning Company (JAVYS) to explore the possibilities for cooperation and further development of advanced modular reactor technologies.
Since its launch in 2021 newcleo has signed a long list of agreements, acquisitions and collaborations. Newcleo initially announced its incorporation with the closing of a $118m initial capital raising and the acquisition of Hydromine Nuclear Energy.
The newcleo website, which now includes a mock-up of its reactor design and some additional technical information. claims to “capitalise on 30 years of R&D activity in metal-cooled fast reactors and liquid-lead cooling systems. Newcleo says its reactor design “has been optimised over the last 20 years leading to the concept of an ultra-compact and transportable 200 MWe module with improvements in energy density compared to other technologies”.
Currently, however, the only operating liquid metal-cooled fast reactors are in Russia, using sodium as the coolant. Russia is also constructing the world’s first lead-cooled small modular reactor (Brest-OD-300) in Seversk as part of a facility to demonstrate an on-site closed fuel cycle, including novel fuel fabrication. This reactor, based on decades of complex research and development, and supported by the entire Russian nuclear industry, is due to begin operation in 2029. By comparison, despite its rapidly growing list of acquisitions and co-operation agreements and optimistic timeline, newcleo’s technology remains in the very early conceptual design stage.
