Decision

GDA Step 1 statement: summary of the GE-Hitachi SMR

Updated 17 December 2024

Applies to England and Wales

This statement sets out the findings of the Environment Agency and Natural Resource Wales (NRW) following our work in Step 1 (Initiation) of the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) of the GE-Hitachi BWRX-300 SMR (small modular reactor) nuclear power station design.

GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy International LLC (UK Branch) is the Requesting Party (RP) for the GDA, subsequently referred to as GE-Hitachi or the RP. GE Vernova, Inc. is the Ultimate Parent Company of GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy International LLC. The GE-Hitachi BWRX-300 is a boiling water reactor with an electrical output of 300 megawatts of electricity.

The environmental regulators – the Environment Agency and NRW – work closely with the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) on GDA.

Illustration of BWRX-300 SMR. Copyright GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy International LLC.

The GDA process

In GDA, the environmental regulators assess if the environmental aspects of a new nuclear power station design are acceptable for potential deployment in the UK. We do this before any developer applies to construct and operate the design at a specific site. GDA enables the regulators to get involved at an early stage of the design when they can have most influence. GDA is not a mandatory requirement and potential operators and developers are still required to apply for and obtain all relevant permissions for their proposed sites. However, completing GDA will help provide the information that is required for site-specific applications and help avoid regulatory concerns and issues being identified during the later stages of a project, especially during construction, when resolving them can have a significant impact on project costs and timescales.

The objectives for Step 1 are for the RP and the environmental regulators to agree:

• the scope of the GDA
• how the RP will document its environment case and submit it for assessment during the GDA process
• how the RP will address any gaps in meeting regulatory requirements, the expectations that it has identified, and its plan for this work
• the arrangements the RP has put in place to carry out the GDA
• the schedule and associated programme for subsequent steps, including plans for submissions and the development of the RP website and comments process ready for entry to Step 2 (Fundamental Assessment)

The regulators began Step 1 of the GDA of the GE-Hitachi BWRX-300 in January 2024 and completed it in 12 months.

At the end of Step 1, we have concluded that:

• GE-Hitachi has completed all the elements of Step 1 that are needed to enter Step 2 of GDA
• the environmental regulators and GE-Hitachi have adequate resources in place and are ready to enter Step 2

The environmental regulators have decided that, following their assessments and readiness review and subject to Environment Agency New Reactors Programme Board agreement, Step 2 can begin in mid-December 2024.

In coming to this position, the environmental regulators have engaged extensively with GE-Hitachi and ONR to review the suitability of all the relevant information provided during Step 1.

The regulators have agreed that the scope of the GDA is adequate. GE-Hitachi can provide enough information and the functional specifications for the design so that we can carry out a meaningful 2 step GDA.

GE-Hitachi has confirmed that it is seeking to complete 2 steps of GDA, ending the process with a Step 2 Statement from the environmental regulators.

Proposed timetable

GDA of the BWRX-300 was initially planned to last 22 months. Step 1 (Initiation) started in January 2024 and was completed in mid-December 2024.

Step 2 (Fundamental Assessment) will start in December 2024. The Step 2 end date is targeted for December 2025.

GE-Hitachi’s submissions

The submissions from GE-Hitachi are expected to adequately address all the information requirements set out in our Guidance for Requesting Parties for Step 1. This also includes relevant project arrangement as defined in ONR’s Guidance to Requesting Parties.

GE-Hitachi has provided a GDA scope document and an environmental strategy document, which together define the environmental scope and submissions for the GDA. The environmental regulators will be assessing these submissions in Step 2. We have discussed these plans with GE-Hitachi, and we consider that they are sufficient for us to carry out a meaningful assessment. GE-Hitachi has submitted a Design Reference Report, describing the design that we will be assessing. This aligns with the agreed scope of the GDA.

We have agreed the submissions schedule for Step 2. However, we acknowledge that these plans could be subject to change. The regulators will continue to discuss the Step 2 submissions schedule with GE-Hitachi throughout Step 2. GE-Hitachi has set out an acceptable structure for the submissions that make up the environment case. This has been established through technical discussions between specialists across all topics.

Interface arrangements are in place that set out how GE-Hitachi will submit information and how the regulators will track it.

The interface arrangements also cover more general project arrangements, and how Regulatory Queries (RQs), Regulatory Observations (ROs) and Regulatory Issues (RIs) will be raised and tracked.

GE-Hitachi has set out how it will manage the public comments process and make information available to the public on a website during Step 2. We have agreed that these arrangements are suitable and will be ready for the start of Step 2.

Our report, GDA Step 1 of the GE-Hitachi SMR: statement of findings, sets out in more detail the activities that have taken place during Step 1 and the regulators’ views on relevant topics.