Consortium formed for Swedish SMR project

Swedish nuclear technical services provider Studsvik, GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GVH), GE Vernova Financial Services, DS Investment Partners and Samsung C&T announced the signing of an agreement to advance the ReFirm nuclear programme at Studsvik's sites in Sweden. The agreement is exclusive for a fixed period, which the parties may extend.

ReFirm is a multi-site small modular reactor (SMR) and new nuclear development programme that became part of the Studsvik Group through the acquisition of Kärnfull Next earlier this year. The programme is focused on light-water SMR technology, with plans for multiple units at "SMR parks". Its plan is for the first unit to be commissioned in the mid-2030s. Kärnfull Next has worked with GE Vernova Hitachi on BWRX-300 deployment in Sweden since 2022 and entered a strategic teaming agreement with Samsung C&T in December 2024.

Under the new agreement, the partners will begin joint development work immediately, including commercial, technical, regulatory and financing activities during the exclusivity period. Studsvik will lead permitting, the environmental impact assessment, site rights, community engagement and the dialogue with the Swedish state. GVH will lead reactor design, licensing support and cost estimation and acts as design authority, and, together with Samsung C&T, acts as the execution team, giving the project single-point responsibility for design and construction delivery. During the exclusivity period, South Korean investment firm DS Investment Partners will lead the investment and GE Vernova Financial Services participates in an advisory and financial structuring capacity in support of the consortium.

A joint project company will be established to support development, financing, construction, ownership and operation of the plants, with details to be finalised in definitive agreements, Studsvik said. It noted that the agreement marks the next phase of development and does not constitute a final investment decision or authorisation to construct.

_{Illustration of a multi-unit SMR campus (Image: Studsvik)}

The agreement covers sites at Nyköping and Valdemarsvik and provides for development to commence with a four-unit BWRX-300 project of about 1,200 MWe in total at one of them.

Studsvik has been investigating the possibility of constructing and operating SMRs on its industrial site near Nyköping on Sweden's east coast. The company has previously said the site is in a strategic location and houses the company's broad expertise in nuclear technology, including fuel and materials technology, reactor analysis software and fuel optimisation, decommissioning and radiation protection services as well as technical solutions for handling, conditioning and volume reduction of radioactive waste.

In March this year, Kärnfull Next submitted an application to build a power plant based on SMRs in the municipality of Valdemarsvik in Östergötland county in southeastern Sweden. It was the first application under Sweden's new Act on Government Approval of Nuclear Facilities. The application - submitted by project company ReFirm Målma AB - covers a planned SMR campus in Valdemarsvik, initially planned to host between four and six small light water reactors. In February 2025, Kärnfull Next announced it had secured land rights for the Valdemarsvik project. The property includes areas that were identified as suitable for nuclear power in studies going back as far as the 1970s.

In June, Studsvik submitted an application to the Swedish government for state support for up to 1,400 MW of new nuclear power, featuring SMRs, in the southern part of the country, with options at Valdemarsvik and Nyköping forming the basis of the application.

Studsvik said the site that hosts the first project will be decided during the development work.

"The phased, multi-unit structure is intended to support standardisation across the programme and creates opportunities to capture lessons learned from early deployment and apply them to subsequent units, helping improve cost, schedule and productivity outcomes," Studsvik said. "It will also help maximise Swedish industrial participation throughout engineering, procurement, construction, and long-term operations. This reflects the broader objective of building a supply chain that can support not only the first project, but also follow-on units and wider deployment opportunities in Sweden and Europe."

GVH's BWRX-300 is a 300 MWe water-cooled, natural circulation SMR with passive safety systems that leverages the design and licensing basis of GEH's ESBWR boiling water reactor. The first BWRX-300 is under construction at Ontario Power Generation's Darlington site in Canada, with completion expected by the end of the decade.

Agreement welcomed

"Sweden's electricity supply is a long-term play: existing nuclear capacity is ageing, and demand for baseload power is growing," said Studsvik President and CEO Karl Thedéen. "To meet that, we have looked for long-term partners and for the conditions that let projects like this succeed. In GE Vernova Hitachi and Samsung C&T we have found them. We intend to build the first project either on an existing nuclear site or on greenfield. One reactor is a project. Four is the start of an industry."

Jason Cooper, CEO of GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy, added: "Today's announcement is about helping Sweden turn its energy ambitions into reality in a timeframe that matters for its communities and industries. The country has a strong foundation of nuclear expertise and operational excellence, and the BWRX-300 combines proven boiling water reactor technology with the lessons being learned every day at the Darlington New Nuclear Project in Canada. Together with a growing global pipeline of projects across North America and Europe, this experience gives Sweden access to a technology that is moving from first-of-a-kind deployment toward fleet-scale execution."

"Samsung C&T is honoured to partner with Studsvik, GE Vernova Hitachi and the other members of the development team to support Sweden's next generation of nuclear energy," said Oh Se-chul, President and CEO, Engineering & Construction Group, Samsung C&T. "By combining proven technology, world-class EPC execution, operational excellence and financing capability, we are establishing a strong foundation for the successful development of the ReFirm programme. We are equally committed to strengthening Sweden's industrial capability, expanding local supply chains and building a long-term strategic partnership that creates lasting value for Studsvik and Sweden."

Ebba Busch, Sweden's Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Energy, and Minister for Business and Industry, welcomed the signing of the agreement, saying: "It is an important step, a great success for Sweden as a nuclear power country and a clear acknowledgment that Sweden is once again a country where world-leading companies want to develop new nuclear power projects ... We have built strong relationships with both the United States and South Korea through several cooperation agreements, including the Technology Prosperity Deal. Now we are moving from words to action, from plans to concrete projects."