Stakeholder perspectives on the cost requirements of small modular reactors

© 2018 Elsevier Ltd The cost of a nuclear power plant (NPP) is an important influence on the future commercial success of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs). At the early design stage, the cost requirements of SMRs can be derived from an analysis of the factors driving the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE). It is often much later into the development process before customers are engaged and their cost requirements are known, by which time key design decisions which influence the lifecycle cost have already been locked-in. A clear understanding is required of the cost priorities for the key stakeholders who are to invest in the SMR. This paper presents a novel approach to ranking the relative importance of different cost factors used to calculate the LCOE. Using a dynamic stakeholder analysis, the key decision-makers for each stage of the SMR product lifecycle are identified. The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) with pair-wise comparisons obtained from nuclear cost experts is employed to rank the different factors in terms of their relative importance on the commercial success of a near-term deployable SMR. Each expert provides a different set of rankings, although project financing cost is consistently the most important for the successful commercial deployment of the SMR. The approach presented in this paper can be used as a verification method for any power generation technology to provide confidence that cost requirements are adequately captured to design for life cycle cost competitiveness from the perspective of different stakeholders

Fission possible: understanding the cost of nuclear power

The cost of nuclear power has been debated ever since the build of the first plant at Calder Hall. Despite crippling construction delays in the 1970s and 80s, nuclear new build is again considered to meet both future demand growth and CO2 reduction targets. UK suppliers could produce around 45% of the high value components, with the potential to enter international export markets. Initially estimated at £9bn, to £16bn after Fukushima, with the most recent estimate at £24.5bn, Hinkley Point C will be the pilot build for new nuclear. The question remains, can the UK build a nuclear power station economically? The research aims to provide a methodology for estimating the cost of future nuclear build projects. This paper will review cost drivers for historic nuclear build, prior to and after their construction. Based on this analysis the paper will critique the current methodology and provide direction for the research