A joint venture between Hitachi, Ltd., which handles the nuclear power business, and GE = General Electric in the United States announced that it has received an order from a Canadian electric power company to construct a small nuclear reactor, which is said to be smaller and lower in construction cost than before.
This is the first time a Japanese company has been involved in an order.
GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, a joint venture between Hitachi and GE in the United States, announced on the 2nd that it has received an order for the construction of a nuclear reactor called "small module reactor" from an electric power company in Ontario, Canada. ..
The output of a conventional nuclear reactor is about 1 million kW, but the small reactor ordered is characterized by a small size of 300,000 kW, and the construction period is short and it is easier to cool the reactor than the conventional reactor. It is said that.
The company will build up to four units, the first of which is scheduled to be completed by 2028 at the earliest.
According to Hitachi, it is the first time for a Japanese company to be involved in an order for a small nuclear reactor.
After the accident at TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, the construction of the nuclear power plant, where issues such as safety became apparent, was postponed one after another.
On the other hand, as the momentum for decarbonization is increasing, overseas, there is a movement to aim for the utilization of small nuclear reactors because they do not emit carbon dioxide during operation, and the United States and Poland are also considering the introduction. increase.