Agreement marks step forward for plans to build small nuclear facility in North Wales

Plans to build a new small scale nuclear project in north Wales have moved a step closer to reality after the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) agreed to support the Welsh government’s nuclear development company with the project.The memorandum of understanding signed by the NDA and Cwmni Egino allows the former to share information about the Trawsfynydd site, helping align the decommissioning of the existing Magnox plant and the development of the new nuclear facility.Trawsfynydd could be the testing ground for Rolls-Royce’s small modular reactor designs, which are currently being considered by nuclear regulators.The manufacturer is understood to be interested in the location, along with another in Wales, Wylfa. Rolls-Royce’s SMR programme has received £210m from the government, which hailed the potential of the technology in last year’s energy security strategy.>> Plans to build eight new nuclear plants announced in government energy strategyCwmni Egino is considering three potential sites outside the boundary of the Magnox station, which was shut down in 1993 and has been in the process of decommissioning since 1995.It is currently developing a business proposition and hopes to begin construction in 2027.Chief executive Alan Raymant said the company’s relationship with the NDA was ”critical” for its vision for new nuclear at Trawsfynydd and said he was “very pleased” to have the agreement formally in place.