30 MW water-cooled small modular reactor could be deployed in French city for clean energy
A French company is set to explore the deployment of a small modular reactor at the Cadarache site, a technological research and development centre for energy.
For this, Calogena has signed a letter of intent with the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA).
At a selected area in the Cadarache site, Calogena will explore the possible deployment of CAL30, its water-cooled small modular reactor (SMR) with a thermal power of 30 MW.
CAL30 SMR will operate at low pressure and low temperature
Designed to supply urban heating networks with carbon-free energy, CAL30 will operate at low pressure and low temperature. Calogena said its aim is for the fastest possible deployment, as early as 2030.
Calogena revealed that CAL30 is one of four SMR designs being evaluated by the French Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection Authority (ASNR). Blue Capsule and Naarea are currently in step 2, the preparatory review.
The company highlighted that it’s in step 3, the pre-licensing phase, which enables initial technical assessments to be started and enables the positions of the regulator to be obtained on a jointly agreed list of identified high-stakes subjects highlighted during the preparatory review phase.
Jimmy is in step 4, where it has requested a “creation authorisation decree” from ASNR to construct an SMR intended to supply industrial heat to a Cristal Union Group plant located on the Bazancourt site, according to a press release.
Decades-old reliable design
Calogena uses the same fuel as conventional reactors, but in a shortened form. The company claims that a Calogena module would have a very limited footprint: 3,000 m2 for the land and less than 1,000 m2 for the buildings. The module does not need a major water or electricity supply. What’s more, refuelling requires just one lorry every two years, compared with dozens every day for a wood-fired solution.
By focusing on district heating, Calogena’s design is optimised to serve it. The reactor is capable of load following according to the needs of the network, and of ramping up quickly. Its reactor’s design is derived from the pool-type research reactors that have been in service around the world for decades, according to Calogena.
Operating at low pressure (6 bars, i.e. less than a bike tyre) and low temperature (100 °C), the direct use of heat and the very limited number of auxiliary systems make the concept intrinsically simpler and safer than any conventional reactor, according to Calogena.
The company claims that its reactor has simple and compact design, the volume of the core is less than one cubic meter, means that systems and components can be factory-assembled and then transported to the installation site, making it shorter and less expensive to build than large power reactors.