Newcleo aims to build new small reactors that can consume spent fuel, although its designs are said to be at an early stage. The report states that ‚The UK has the largest civil plutonium stockpile in the world‘. Units could be smaller SMR’s than Rolls-Royce plans to offer, and also sealed ones suitable for ships. Similar types of proposal have happened before, but seem to have fizzled out.
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A nuclear power start-up is seeking to create clean energy out of 140 tonnes of waste plutonium stored in Cumbria as Britain scrambles to wean itself off fossil fuels, says the Daily Telegraph.

Newcleo hopes to use spent fuel deposited in Sellafield in a pioneering reactor design that will rival the small nuclear generators being developed by Rolls-Royce.

The proposals come as Boris Johnson seeks to usher in a nuclear revolution for Britain after vowing to triple capacity with eight additional reactors by 2050.

London-based Newcleo will probably put its first reactor on British soil because of a precedent for private operators of nuclear plants in the UK, according to Italian physicist Stefano Buono, chief executive.

It is understood to be keen to use plutonium stored at Sellafield but has not yet decided on a site for its first plant.

Mr Buono’s lead-cooled reactor models use a mix of uranium and plutonium, which is a waste product of existing plants in the UK.

Full article here.

via Tallbloke’s Talkshop

 June 21, 2022, by oldbrew

Nuclear start-up seeks to turn Britain’s waste plutonium into clean energy