QIA invests £85m into Rolls-Royce SMR

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Qatar Investment Authority is taking a 10 per cent equity share in Rolls-Royce SMR Limited with an £85m investment.

QIA
Image: Rolls-Royce SMR

QIA, the sovereign wealth fund of Qatar, joins Rolls-Royce Group, BNF Resources UK Ltd and Exelon Generation Ltd as shareholders in Rolls-Royce SMR.

“I am tremendously pleased to announce that we have further strengthened our relationship with Qatar, through QIA’s investment in the Rolls-Royce SMR business,” Warren East, CEO, Rolls-Royce Group, said in a statement. “We have successfully raised the capital we need to establish Rolls-Royce SMR and it is encouraging to confirm that the business is now set up to succeed.”

Funding boost sets Rolls-Royce SMR on path to generation

Rolls-Royce SMR is building a new technology solution to deliver affordable, low carbon, nuclear power via small modular reactors. The Rolls-Royce SMR is a compact power station design, producing 470MWe from a Gen III+ pressurised water reactor (PWR). The entire plant is being designed as a number of modular sub-assemblies which will be manufactured in factories then transported to site for rapid assembly inside a weatherproof canopy.

Rolls-Royce add that a single power station will occupy around one tenth of the size of a conventional nuclear plant and power approximately one million homes.

Mansoor bin Ebrahim Al-Mahmoud, CEO of QIA said: “QIA is investing in the energy transition and funding the technologies that enable low carbon electricity generation. We will continue to seek out investments that align with our mandate to deliver long-term value for future generations through responsible sustainable investments.”

Business and energy secretary Kwasi Kwarteng added: “This investment is a clear vote of confidence in the UK’s global leadership in nuclear innovation and follows the £210m of government investment in the development in Small Modular Reactors.

“It represents a huge step forward in our plan to deploy more home-grown, affordable clean energy - ensuring greater energy independence for the UK, highly skilled jobs and bringing cheaper, cleaner electricity to people’s homes.”

The Rolls-Royce SMR business is now fully funded, having secured £490m through commercial equity and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) grant funding.