Rolls-Royce secures £600m to launch UK’s first small nuclear reactors

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Rolls-Royce SMR has secured nearly £600 million in backing from the National Wealth Fund for the design and delivery of the UK’s first Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).

The agreement, signed with Great British Energy – Nuclear (GBE-N), marks the start of a multi-billion-pound program aimed at bolstering national energy security and providing the high-capacity, “always-on” power required to fuel the government’s ambitious artificial intelligence and computing vision.

Unlike traditional, massive nuclear power stations, SMRs utilise standardised, factory-built components that can be transported to site, significantly reducing construction timelines and costs. This modular approach is seen as essential for the UK’s proposed AI Growth Zones (AIGZs).

These zones require massive, stable energy injections to power the next generation of data centres, which are currently straining the National Grid. By deploying SMRs, the government hopes to create a “sovereign energy shield” that can power intensive AI model training and high-performance computing without being subject to the volatility of fossil fuel markets.

The initial three-unit project is expected to generate 1.4GWe of electricity, enough to power three million homes while supporting 3,000 jobs during peak construction. Chris Cholerton, Chief Executive of Rolls-Royce SMR, stated that the contract “brings certainty” to the program and allows the company to transform how nuclear projects are delivered.

“We are giving greater cost and schedule certainty with a standardized, factory-built approach,” Cholerton noted, adding that the project will “power up our business and the UK supply chain.”

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband described the milestone as a vital step toward ending dependence on unpredictable global energy markets. “Our clean energy mission is the only route to getting off the rollercoaster of fossil fuels and taking back control of our energy independence,” Miliband said.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves echoed this sentiment, noting that the investment would build a “new generation of homegrown nuclear technology that will power our economy for decades to come.” With the National Wealth Fund now “crowding in” private capital, the government is betting that these mini-reactors will provide the energy infrastructure necessary to keep Britain at the forefront of the global AI race.

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