LONDON (Reuters) -Energy firm newcleo said on Wednesday it would suspend its programme to develop lead-cooled fast reactors (LFR) in Britain and substantially wind down its UK activities due to the lack of support and funding from the government.
LFRs are a type of advanced nuclear reactor technology which are smaller and more efficient than conventional nuclear reactors and can be built in factories and assembled on site to provide heat for industrial processes and hydrogen production.
The firm, established in 2021 and headquartered in Britain, said it had planned to develop up to four such reactors in the UK, producing a total of 800 megawatts, enough to power around 1.6 million homes, and representing around 4 billion pounds ($5 billion) of investment.
The company said it had engaged with successive UK governments on access to the country’s stock of stored plutonium which it had planned to recycle for use in the reactors.
“Sadly, despite many attempts to engage with political stakeholders, the UK government has decided to not make its plutonium available for the foreseeable future and to lend its political support and considerable funding to other technologies,” Stefano Buono, founder and CEO of newcleo, said in a statement.
In addition, support and funding have been made available to other small modular reactor technologies but they have not been forthcoming for LFR developers such as newcleo in Britain, the firm said.
Instead, it will focus on other important markets.
In Slovakia, newcleo said it had created a joint venture with state-owned nuclear company JAVYS to build up to four LFRs powered by the country’s spent nuclear fuel stocks, which has received endorsement from government officials.
In June, an agreement with the Lithuanian government was signed based on a similar strategy.
“newcleo believes that, by comparison, these markets offer better prospects than the UK at this time and this has driven the decision to strengthen its focus on territories more aligned with its offering,” the company said.
($1 = 0.7525 pounds)
(Reporting by Nina ChestneyEditing by Mark Potter)
