Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) could reshape Europe’s energy future, offering reliable, low-carbon and non-intermittent power. But regulatory, financial and workforce barriers risk holding the EU back. This session explores what needs to change for Europe to compete in the emerging SMR market.
Aadvocacy meetings: Presentation of the policy paper to key stakeholders
The EU is entering a critical phase in the definition of its long-term energy policy. SMRs have emerged as a potential transformative technology, promising cheap, low-carbon, reliable, and non-intermittent electricity generation. The opportunity for the EU to lead or at least compete in the SMR industry will be open for a handful of years. However, SMR deployment in the EU faces significant bottlenecks, including regulatory, financial, and workforce-related challenges, which may be exacerbated by the Union’s institutional and market characteristics and may prevent the EU to successfully joining this technology progress.
This paper examines these constraints and proposes policy and market-oriented solutions from a liberal perspective, focusing on regulatory reform, financing mechanisms, technological development, and workforce capacity. It argues that, if the current framework remains unchanged, SMRs are unlikely to achieve cost competitiveness and may depend heavily on public support, similarly to, or more than, conventional large-scale nuclear projects.
This session enables the presentation of the policy paper to key stakeholders within the Renew Europe family and beyond. The visit to Brussels gives the opportunity to the authors, experts of the paper to advocate for their proposals and engage directly with European decision-makers.