By US Department of Energy
Monday, March 8, 2010
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu today
announced selections for the award of approximately $40 million in
total to two teams led by Pittsburgh-based Westinghouse Electric
Co. and San Diego-based General Atomics for conceptual design and
planning work for the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP).
The results of this work will help the Administration determine
whether to proceed with detailed efforts toward construction and
demonstration of the NGNP. If successful, the NGNP
Demonstration Project will demonstrate high-temperature gas-cooled
reactor technology that will be capable of producing electricity as
well as process heat for industrial applications and will be
configured for low technical and safety risk with highly reliable
operations. Final cost-shared awards are subject to the
negotiation of acceptable terms and conditions.
About 16 percent of the Nation's greenhouse gas emissions come
from industrial process heat applications. The process heat
or steam generated by the high-temperature nuclear reactors could
be used for highly-efficient electricity co-generation, which has
the potential to help energy-intensive industries, such as
petrochemical producers, reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
"This investment reflects President Obama's commitment to
building the next generation of nuclear reactors that will create
thousands of jobs and supply the clean energy to power our
economy," said Secretary Chu. "It's time for America to
recapture the lead in the nuclear energy industry and lay the
foundation for a stronger, cleaner, and more competitive economic
future."
The NGNP project is being conducted in two phases. Phase 1
comprises research and development, conceptual design and
development of licensing requirements. The selections announced
today will support the development of conceptual designs, cost and
schedule estimates for demonstration project completion and a
business plan for integrating Phase 2 activities. The Department of
Energy will use information from its independent Federal advisory
committee, the Nuclear Energy Advisory Committee, information and
data gathered in Phase 1, and other factors in determining whether
the project should continue to Phase 2.
Phase 2 would entail detailed design, license review and
construction of a demonstration plant.
The Department will now negotiate the final terms and conditions
for the awards with the intention of completing conceptual designs
by August 31, 2010.
|
NEXT GENERATION NUCLEAR PLANT AWARDEES
|
| RECIPIENTS |
RECIPIENT TEAM MEMBERS |
Westinghouse Electric Co.
(Pittsburgh) |
Pebble Bed Modular Reactor Limited,
Shaw Environmental & Infrastructure Inc., Toshiba, Doosan,
Technology Insights, and M-Tech Industrial (PTY) Ltd |
General Atomics
(San Diego) |
General Dynamics Electric Boat
Division, URS Washington Division, Korea Atomic Energy Research
Institute, and Fuji Electric Systems |
SOURCE