UK & Rolls Royce Sign Deal for Three SMRS at Wylfa

• UK & Rolls Royce Sign a Deal for Three Reactors At Wylfa
• X-energy Announces Initial Public Offering
• First American Nuclear Submits Regulatory Engagement Plan to NRC
• Rising Oil Prices Push Japan to Focus on Nuclear Energy
• Sweden Proposes Majority State Ownership In Videberg Nuclear Project
• Inertia Fusion Signs Partnership with LLNL

UK & Rolls Royce Sign a Deal for Three SMRs at Wylfa

• Work will start immediately on the delivery of three Rolls-Royce 470 MW small modular reactors at Wylfa.

(NucNet contributed to this report) Rolls-Royce SMR and UK government body Great British Energy-Nuclear (GBE-N) have signed a contract that enables work to start immediately on the delivery of three Rolls-Royce 470 MW small modular reactors (SMRs) at Wylfa, which is located at the costal site of Ynys Môn (Anglesey) in North Wales. The three-unit project at Ynys Môn will generate at least 1,400 MW.

Rolls-Royce SMR was selected as the preferred technology partner in June 2025, and $3.4 billion was allocated by the government towards this contract and the wider program delivery. In November 2025, the UK announced that Wylfa would host the UK’s first SMRs.

The government said in a statement that since then GBE-N, the body in charge of overseeing the deployment of new reactors in Britain, and Rolls-Royce SMR teams have worked intensively to complete the contract.

It will require Rolls-Royce SMR to work with GBE-N to deliver against key milestones as it begins site-specific design, regulatory engagement and planning processes, ahead of a future final investment decision (FID). Rolls-Royce’s SMR design is currently at the final stage of the Gerneric Design Assesment (GDA) process, which is expected to conclude by December 2026.

The government said SMRs represent a new generation of nuclear power, delivering proven technology through standardised, modular, factory-built components. This approach reduces delivery risk, shortens construction timelines, and minimises local environmental disruption.

Rolls-Royce SMR said the agreement allows work to start on site through a firm contract allowing Rolls-Royce SMR to develop its site-specific design and order critical components from the supply chain. GBE-N has already awarded over $473 million in contracts across the supply chain this year, including some of the UK’s leading companies.

Rolls-Royce has plans to build 16 of its SMRs at various sites across the UK. Kick starting the supply chains for the full fleet with three units is a clear signal to suppliers to invest in their capabilities to meet this demand.

Chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves said: “This investment, along with vital financing from the National Wealth Fund (NWF), will strengthen our energy security, create skilled jobs and help to build a new generation of homegrown nuclear technology [emphasis added] that will power our economy for decades to come.” The NWF is a public financial institution created to mobilize private capital for clean energy and industrial growth.

She added, “The current conflict in the Middle East is yet another reminder that the only route to energy security and sovereignty for the UK is to end dependence on fossil fuel markets, and accelerate the transition to clean, homegrown power.”

$810 Million Awarded to Complete the Generic Design

As the technology selected through the GBE-N procurement process, Rolls-Royce SMR was able to apply for a loan on commercial terms that will be provided by the NWF. That application was successful, with a facility of up to $810 million available to support the final generic design of the Rolls-Royce SMR.

The announcement on 04/13/26 was welcomed by the UK’s nuclear industry. Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the London-based Nuclear Industry Association, said: “This is a historic step for clean power, industrial growth and skilled jobs in Wales. It marks the beginning of a significant and exciting new phase for the project and the people of Ynys Môn.”

Three Reactors or Eight?

According to a summary of Welsh Parliament govenment report, prepared by released by the Matthew Sutton, Ph.D., Senedd Research, the following issues are relevant.

The original Wylfa nuclear power station at this site generated electricity from 1971 until it was closed in 2015.

In 2012, Hitachi bought the Wylfa site and proposed constructing a new power station, called ‘Wylfa Newydd’, on adjacent land. It would have been composed of twin 1,350 MW BWRs. Hitachi scrapped these plans in 2020 after failing to reach an agreement with the UK Government over construction costs.

The UK Government subsequently purchased the Wylfa site in 2024, later earmarking it as the “first choice site for [a] large-scale gigawatt nuclear power plant.” On 11/13/25, UK Energy Minister Michael Shanks MP announced Wylfa as the UK’s first SMR deployment site, saying:

“The initial project will see the construction of up to three Rolls-Royce SMR units, with GBE-N [Great British Energy – Nuclear] assessing the site to have the potential to host up to 8 units, although this would be subject to future policy and funding decisions.”

So far neither GBN nor Rolls-Royce have addressed the issue of how many of its 470 MWe PWRs would actually be built at Wylfa although the site is reportedly capable to hosting eight of them.

Regulation, Permitting, and Planned Permission

Currently, new nuclear power stations in Wales require three key approvals before any building can begin:

• Site licensing and relevant consent from the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR);
• Permits from Natural Resources Wales (NRW); and
• Planning permission from the relevant authorities, which depends on project size and site

How will Wylfa be Funded?

Following a 2022 UK legislative change, nuclear projects such as the Wylfa SMRs may use a Regulated Asset Base (RAB) funding model. The RAB model allows companies to charge all energy customers a regulated price on energy bills to support the capital costs of nuclear project construction. Such a charge would be managed by the energy regulator Ofgem.

A ‘Well Understood’ Technology

The Rolls-Royce SMR is a 470-MW pressurized water reactor (PWR) that uses well understood technology for light water reactors that is already operating in hundreds of nuclear plants.

The Rolls-Royce SMR has adopted an industry leading boron-free primary circuit design, which has allowed toxic and corrosive boric acid to be eliminated from all essential systems. This step drastically reduces plant water consumption but, more importantly, eliminates this hazardous waste source from daily operations.

The reactor core is protected from external risks and the impact of any ground movement. Internally, the reactor is protected by safety systems that can operate independently of any human intervention so that the core is put into a safe state with no external intervention for up to three days.

Technical Summary of the Rolls-Royce SMR

• Pressurized water reactor; 3-loop compact PWR?. Boron-free design to reduce environmental impact.
• Electrical capacity (MWe); 470?;
• Thermal capacity (MWth)? 1358;?
• Fuel type / assembly array?, UO3 in 17×17 array?;
• Fuel cycle 81-24 months?
• Refuelling outage 18 days)
• Design life 60 years

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X-energy Announces Initial Public Offering

X-Energy, Inc. announced its initial public offering (IPO) of 42,857,143 shares of its Class A common stock. In connection with the offering, X-energy expects to grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 6,428,571 shares of Class A common stock. The IPO price is expected to be between $16.00 to $19.00 per share. X-energy’s Class A common stock has been approved for listing, subject to official notice of issuance, under the ticker symbol “XE” on the Nasdaq Global Select Market.

The IPO could raise between $686 million and $814 million. The firm targets a valuation of $7.51 billion. J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Jefferies, and Moelis & Company are acting as the lead joint book-running managers for the offering.

X-Energy has two projects underway in the US. The first is to supply four of its 80 MW HTGRs to Dow to provide heat and power to the chemical giant’s gulf coast Long Mott production facility in Calhoun County, TX, located about 150 miles southwest of Houston, TX. The second is a planned project with Amazon to build an fleet of up to 12 of its SMRs at a site near the Columbia Generating Station in Richland, WA.

A license application for the Texas site was submitted to the NRC in March 2025. A final safety evaluation is expected in November 2026. Up to 10 80 MW units are envisioned for the site.

The Amazon project, known as the Cascade Advanced Energy Facility., has a planned build out of 5 GW but will start with four units for 320MW. Construction is expected to start by the end of this decade, with operations targeted to start in the 2030s. In October 2024 Amazon committed to invest $500 million to the project.

A third project in the UK is significantly larger. In the U.K., the company aims to deploy a 6-GW fleet of Xe-100s for its customer energy company Centrica. The project is slated to start with a 12-unit build at the site of the Hartlepool nuclear power plant. X-energy and Cavendish have established a goal to secure up to 80% of its plant construction and manufacturing from the UK supply chain.

In April 2024 X-energy and Cavendish Nuclear were granted $23 million in funding from the UK government to develop plans for the deployment of X-energy’s Xe-100 high temperature gas-cooled reactor in the country. The government’s award of $23 million will be matched by X-energy for a total programme of $46 million. The companies will use the funds to develop UK-specific deployment plans including an assessment of domestic manufacturing and supply chain opportunities, constructability, modularization studies, and fuel management.

X-energy’s Xe-100 high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) is a helium-cooled, pebble-bed design that operates at temperatures exceeding 750C. It uses aboutg 200,000 graphite pebbles, each embedded with aboutg 18,000 tri-structural isotropic (TRISO) fuel particles. X-Energy’s safety design review at the NRC continues with the submission of pre-application topical reports. The firm updated its regulatory engagement plan at the NRC in March 2026.

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First American Nuclear Submits Regulatory Engagement Plan to NRC

• The firm is developing a lead cooled Fast-Spectrum Small Modular Reactor (SMR)

• Potential customers for power purchase agreemetns are targeted at a planned major industrial complex in Indiana which has early expressions of interest from Eli Lilly for an enormous R&D center and factory to produce its products, and from Facebook (Meta) for a massive data center.

First American Nuclear (FANCO), a nuclear power company and developer of fast-spectrum small modular reactors (SMRs), announced the submission of its regulatory engagement plan (Full text PDF file) for its EAGL-1 small modular reactor (SMR) to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The filing formally opens the company’s pre-application engagement with the NRC and marks a significant milestone on the path toward a construction permit.

The FANCO regulatory engagement plan outlines a schedule of white paper and topical report submittals beginning later this year, covering principal design criteria, prototype licensing strategy, functional containment, lead-bismuth thermal hydraulics, fuel qualification, and probabilistic risk assessment, among others.

EAGL-1 is designed from the ground up to be licensable under the NRC’s existing regulatory framework, setting it apart from many other advanced reactor designs. While EAGL-1 is being licensed, FANCO customers get immediate gas-fueled power to bridge the gap to a time whne the firm’s reactors are licensed, built, and commissioned for operation. The company did not commit to a timeline for bringing its reactors online in revenue service.

A formal review conducted by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) under a Department of Energy GAIN (Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear) (PNNL-28013) program award concluded that the EAGL-1 design, subject to further design development and analysis, would be licensable under existing NRC criteria, with no new rules, and no novel regulatory frameworks. Additionally, FANCO is building a lead-bismuth test loop that will provide the NRC with unequivocal, real-world performance data, rather than relying solely on models and historical analysis.

About Lead-bismuth Cooling

EAGL-1 is a liquid metal fast reactor (LMFR), and the only U.S.-based nuclear reactor design cooled using a metal alloy called lead-bismuth. It is designed to generate 240 MW MWe electric and 600 Mwt thermal in a typical six-reactor cluster for a total of 1,440 MW electric per power plant.

The non-pressurized, four-loop primary system is enclosed in a guard vessel with all pipe penetrations above the fuel assemblies, making core-uncovering pipe failures physically impossible. Decay heat removal is intended to be fully passive, enabling a walk-away-safe profile with no operator action required. EAGL-1 will initially operate on high assay low enriched uranium (HALEU) fuel.

According to First American Nuclear, lead-bismuth cooling technology has greater thermal performance advantages than liquid sodium, but none of sodium’s chemical reactivity with air or water. This property eliminates the need for an intermediate heat-transfer loop, reducing capital cost while enhancing safety.

EPC on Board

FANCO has engaged AtkinsRéalis as primary architect-engineer, partnered with Purdue University for testing support, and is working with the State of Indiana on manufacturing, siting, and workforce development. The reactor design was developed with GAIN vouchers and a DOE Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program development grant.

Investors to Date

According to Pitchbook and other sources, Total funding as of early 2026 is approximately $12.5 million in total funding. A $10 million Series A round was completed on December 4, 2025, specifically aimed at product development and regulatory engagement. Key Firm: Foundt Capital is listed as a primary institutional investor.

LEAPs and Bounds

A the Letter of Intent (LOI) between Eli Lilly and the State of Indiana regarding SMR projects, mentioning FANCO as the state’s primary reactor partner.

Lilly is confirmed as a tenant in the Limitless Exploration/Advanced Pace (LEAP) Research and Innovation District, led by the Indiana Economic Development Corp. (IEDC). It is located in Boone County, IN.

So far the State of Indian has spent $985 million on land acquistion, site assessments, etc. Of that amount, $427 million was used to purchase 5,800 acres of land. Eli Lilly purchased 605 acres for $60 million. The LEAP site comprises a total of 9,000 acres.

The development is expected to have massive energy needs. Lilly is reported to be planning to invest $13 billion into a research and manufacturing facility in the district. Gas fired power plants will need to be built to support it until well into the 2030s before SMRs come on the market.

Separately, Facebook’s parent company META has reportedly struck a deal with the city of Lebanon, IN, in November for an initial $800 million investment. Preliminary site work began last February. The State of Indiana is also rounding up water resources for data centers and manufacturing plants.

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Rising Oil Prices Push Japan to Focus on Nuclear Energy

The Asahi Shimbun newspaper in Japan reports that Japanese government officials and the country’s nuclear utilities are leveraging the Middle East crisis to frame nuclear energy as essential for national security and a shield against volatile energy prices.

The convergence of geopolitical and economic pressures, and the surge in global resource prices, appears to be shifting public opinion in favor of nuclear energy. Recent polls show public support for nuclear reactor restarts ranges from 40%-to-50%.

Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s resumption of full commercial operations of the No. 6 reactor at its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in Niigata Prefecture on 04/16/26 has strengthened those assertions. The unit boasts an output of about 1.35 GWe, generating enough electricity annually for 2.5 million households and accounting for about 5% of the power used in TEPCO’s service area.

METI minister Ryosei Akazawa said at a news conference on 04/14/26,“If the No. 6 reactor continues to operate, it will have the effect of saving annually about 30% of the LNG imported via the Strait of Hormuz.”

Japan generates its largest share of energy through liquefied natural gas (LNG), whose prices are often linked to oil prices. Consumer fears in Japan are rising that higher LNG prices will be passed on to household electricity bills.

A senior economy ministry official told the newspaper the suspension of oil tanker passage through the Strait of Hormuz presents a perfect opportunity for the Japanese public to understand the necessity of nuclear power. “The energy supply from nuclear power plants will help to alleviate the public’s concerns,” the official said.

According to the news report, the rapidly expanding AI industry is also pinning its hopes on the restarted reactor. The government now estimates that new data centers and semiconductor factories will increase electricity demand.

Japan has a policy goal of having nuclear power meet about 20% of the energy mix by then, a goal that will require more than 30 operational reactors. Only 15 have restarted so far.

As it promotes reactor restarts, the government is also addressing the unresolved issue of nuclear waste. In March, it proposed a literature survey on Minami-Torishima, a remote island under the jurisdiction of the Tokyo metropolitan government, as a potential final waste disposal site.

A senior government official told the newspaper, “If we are going to restart the plants, we must also make progress in resolving the issue of finding a final disposal site.”

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Sweden Proposes Majority State Ownership In Videberg Nuclear Project

• Government says it seeks to de-risk early investment in new reactors.
• It is a clear signal that some countries will require state owned enterprises to ramp up investments in nuclear energy.

(NucNet) Videberg Kraft, currently 80%-owned by Vattenfall, plans to deploy up to 1,500 MW of new nuclear at the existing Ringhals site on the Värö peninsula in southwest Sweden.The Government of Sweden has proposed taking a majority stake in nuclear power developer Videberg Kraft as part of a broader plan to support new nuclear construction and reduce investment risks, according to a spring amending budget for 2026.

Ringhals is a nuclear power plant in Sweden. It is situated on the Värö Peninsula in Varberg Municipality approximately 65 km south of Gothenburg. With a total power rating of 2,190 MWe, it is the second largest power plant in Sweden. It is owned 70% by Vattenfall and 30% by Uniper SE.

The plant has two pressurized water reactors (R3 and R4). A third pressurized water reactor, R2, was permanently shut down in 2019. In December 2020 the R1 boiling water reactor was also permanently shut down.

The Videberg project involves plans to build three to five small modular reactor (SMR) units with a combined capacity of about 1,500 MW at the existing Ringhals site on the Värö peninsula in southwest Sweden. These numbers suggest an SMR design of 300 MW.

Earlier reports said Videberg is planning a project with either five BWRX-300 reactors from GE Vernova Hitachi or three reactors from Rolls-Royce SMR, which will provide a total output of approximately 1,500 MW. In August 2025, Vattenfall shortlisted the two reactor designs in a process that had begun with 75 potential suppliers. A timeline for a decision is pending.

The government said the project represents about 30% of the 5,000 MW of new nuclear capacity the government has identified as eligible for state support under its financing and risk-sharing framework. Under the proposal, the Swedish state would acquire shares in Videberg in 2026-2027 to reach a 60% ownership stake, alongside an initial capital injection of up to $195 million. The company is currently owned by state-owned Vattenfall (80%) and Industrikraft i Sverige (20%).

A government statement said the move is part of a wider policy plan that positions new nuclear as a long-term “societal investment” requiring both private capital and direct state involvement.

The government said it is also seeking authorization to adjust the proposed ownership share in Videberg within a range of 51% to 65% during the construction phase, reflecting uncertainties associated with large-scale nuclear projects.

In addition, the state is requesting approval to provide up to $3.74 bilion in capital contributions during construction, conditional on proportional funding from other shareholders. The government also proposed to take on part of the financial risk associated with fixed costs in a new system for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste.

Acting climate and environment minister Johan Britz said, “The intention is to limit the first move’s share of the fixed costs, considering that more reactors are expected to be added, which will ultimately spread total fixed costs. We are already seeing that there is interest from several actors to build nuclear power in Sweden,” said

In May 2025, Sweden passed a law establishing a state aid framework including government-backed loans and two-way contracts for difference for companies planning to build nuclear reactors, covering projects with a total capacity of up to 5,000 MW.

The government has proposed a financial framework of up to $2.62 billion billion over 12 years to support new reactor construction, with annual price guarantee allocations of $35 million to $107 million for up to 40 years after new units begin operation.

Sweden’s energy minister Ebba Busch said: “Sweden is a nuclear power nation and as industry is electrified and the need for electricity grows, long-term solutions are required.”

“The government is now taking the next step to clarify the state’s role and responsibility in the further expansion of nuclear power.”

In December 2025, Vattenfall (through Videberg) applied for state financing to build new reactors at its Ringhals plant on the Värö Peninsula.

Sweden has six reactor units in commercial operation at three sites: Forsmark, Oskarshamn and Ringhals. According to International Atomic Energy Agency data, nuclear energy provided 29% of the country’s electricity generation in 2024.

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Inertia Fusion Signs Partnership with LLNL

• The public-private partnership with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is focused on commercializing fusion energy

Inertia Enterprises, a commercial fusion energy company, announced a strategic partnership with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), establishing one of the largest private sector-led partnerships in the history of the U.S. national lab system.

On the heels of its $450 million Series A funding round in February 2026, the collaboration with LLNL expands on the research and development capabilities and capital position. The Series A investment round was led by Bessemer Venture Partners and includes Threshold Ventures, Long Journey Ventures, and GV (formerly Google Ventures).

These elements are intended to accelerate the company’s path towards commercializing fusion energy. To date, LLNL is home to the only facility in the world to successfully demonstrate fusion energy gain.

Inertia is pursuing a laser indirect drive fusion energy concept. They plan to develop a 10 megajoule (MJ) diode-pumped, solid state laser driving an indirect drive target containing deuterium-tritium (DT) fuel. Inertia’s envisioned power plant will use 1,000 of these lasers, firing 10 times a second.

Inertia expects to begin construction of their pilot plant in 2030. Alongside the power plant, Inertia is planning to build a production facility to make the lasers and production lines to supply millions of fuel pellets that are needed for their envisioned concept.

Partnerships and CRADAs

Inertia and LLNL have signed two Strategic Partnership Projects (SPPs) and a new Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA), mechanisms that allow private companies to collaborate with national laboratories for research and development. The partnership also includes a licensing agreement for a broad portfolio of nearly 200 patents covering inertial fusion technology developed at LLNL, including exclusive rights to some foundational inventions.

“Decades of public investment in fusion science have created a foundation that only America’s national labs could have built. Inertia exists to take that foundation and do what the private sector does best: build at scale and deliver commercial impact,” said Jeff Lawson, CEO and co-founder of Inertia. “This partnership with LLNL ensures we’re doing that with the full weight of their scientific expertise behind us.”

Kim Budil, director of LLNL, said, “We are committed to ensuring that the 60 years of public investment, fusion leadership, and scientific breakthroughs achieved here don’t stay in the laboratory. This partnership positions LLNL’s expertise in inertial fusion science, laser technology, physics design, and target fabrication to directly inform the industrial-scale development that commercial fusion demands.”

An Outside Business Agreement (OBA) enabled by the 2022 CHIPS and Science Act allows Dr. Andrea “Annie” Kritcher to continue her national security research activities at LLNL while co-founding Inertia to commercialize the historic breakthroughs and technological innovations in fusion science she’s pioneered over her decades-long research career.

Dr. Kritcher, co-founder and Chief Scientist of Inertia, said, “After more than two decades at LLNL working on inertial fusion and high-energy-density physics, designing the first burning, ignited, and gain >1 fusion plasmas and serving as lead for integrated modeling in the Inertial Confinement Fusion Program, I’ve always asserted that realizing this at scale requires a deep partnership with the lab to fully leverage the capability and experience.”

“Ignition at LLNL showed this approach to fusion works. At Inertia, we now get to build on that foundation and push it to industrial scale.”