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“Challenges and potential of SMRs in the energy transition” is the third article in the #AtomInAction series, which we write together with energy experts from Deloitte. Together, we take a closer look at the topic of the atom from the perspective of technology, application and operational safety.

This time, a few words about small modular reactors (SMRs), which have been causing a lot of excitement in the nuclear power community recently. In an article as part of the #AtomInAction series, the authors write about, among other things, what an SMR reactor is, what types of SMR reactors there are, how SMR reactors find their way into the Polish energy system, new business models for investing in power plants based on SMR reactors

“SMR reactors promise many benefits for those who choose to build and operate them. They also enjoy tremendous political support. However, as with many innovative solutions, they have yet to prove their merits in practice in order to become an integral part of a decarbonised energy sector covering heat and electricity needs in a reliable and at the same time climate-friendly manner” – Przemysław Żydak, board member/co-owner of Sotis Advisors.

The full article is available on Deloitte website

il. Polish miner KGHM to deploy NuScale Power’s SMR technology to power up its operations / NS Energy Business

Construction work on the third terminal at the Baltic Hub in Gdansk continues to be supervised. The expansion of the Baltic Hub by T3 will allow it to increase its capacity and handle ultra-large container vessels. Ania, who acts as a social expert on the project, has just started another ‘business visit’. This time we are focusing on verifying how the project affects local businesses and tourists. In addition to this, we are looking forward to continuing to verify that the project meets the requirements of the EBRD, Polish law and international standards with regard to the workers employed on site. We are working!

Photo by Andrzej Otrębski (view from the John Paul II Bridge)

“Regulating the nuclear sector. Nuclear law” is an article in the #AtomInAction series, which we write together with energy experts from Deloitte. Together, we will present the subject of atomic energy in terms of technology, implementation and occupational safety.

In the introduction of the article reads: “The nuclear sector, understood as an activity involving exposure to ionizing radiation, is subject to strict regulation because the risks it entails are very specific and nuclear technologies often have dual civilian and military applications. It is therefore recognized that the conduct of activities involving exposure to ionizing radiation requires specialized regulation to take advantage of the advantages of nuclear technologies (nuclear medicine, production of isotopes for medicine, diagnostics, energy production and many others) while safeguarding the potential risks of dual use and the danger of these technologies or the products produced by their use being taken over by undesirable persons or entities. In Poland, a draft law on the preparation and realization of investments in nuclear energy facilities and accompanying investments has recently been reviewed, resulting in an amendment to the so-called the nuclear special act, which entered into force on 13 April 2023.”

“Given the scope of the analyses, which overlap in many areas in the case of location studies (for the location decision) and environmental studies (for the environmental decision), their conduct takes place in parallel and is closely linked. In practice, the first more important administrative process for a nuclear power plant is to obtain an environmental decision, followed by a location decision. The impact report and the environmental decision have to be obtained earlier and are attachments to the application for a decision on the location of the construction of a nuclear power plant” – writes Dr Przemysław Żydak.

The full article is available on Deloitte website.