The SA Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) is drafting the criteria for a partner to pilot the development of small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) in SA, which may then be deployed at Eskom’s old coal-fired power stations as they get decommissioned.
“Necsa and Eskom are aligned,” Necsa CEO Loyiso Tyabashe told journalists at a breakfast event hosted by the corporation. He said locating SMRs at such power stations could bring down the cost by about 30% because the surrounding infrastructure, including grid connections, could still be used.
The corporation also planned to resume the production of nuclear fuel to ensure SA was self-sufficient and for export, he said.
“SMRs are the biggest talk in town,” Tyabashe said, pointing to its potential for grid-tied generation and powering data centres off-grid.
Tyabashe also disclosed the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR), a programme stopped by then President Jacob Zuma in 2010 that is currently under care and maintenance at Eskom, would be relocated to Necsa during this year. “We will review the IP to see what can still be used,” Tyabashe said.
He said while Russia and China were the only two countries with operational SMRs there are many designs that Necsa would also consider.
While he did not mention any specific vendors, electricity and energy minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa visited US-based X-energy late last year. X-energy is developing their Xe-100 reactor for the Dow-Corporation. According to the company’s website the project, supported by the US department of energy, was expected to be the first grid-scale advanced nuclear reactor deployed to serve an industrial site in North America, “providing the site with zero-carbon emissions power and high-temperature steam.”
Several SA nuclear scientists who previously worked on the PBMR are in leading positions at X-energy.
Local businessperson Andrè Pienaar, whose C5 Capital is a shareholder in X-energy, has previously said SA, with its well-developed nuclear regulatory environment and skills base, was well-positioned to be the entry point for SMRs on the African continent. That would present huge opportunities for industrialisation and employment.
According to Tyabashe, Necsa will be looking for a partner with a good design for energy generation, process heating and isotope production. The extent to which a candidate is prepared to share intellectual property will also be taken into consideration, he said, adding “SA is a preferred entry point into Africa”.
Tyabashe said the turnaround strategy Necsa adopted in 2021 was bearing fruit with improved audit outcomes and a return to profitability.
The group, reported R2.7bn in revenue last year, half of it earned from exports and employs about 1,600 staff members is now set for growth, he said.
Necsa’s Safari research reactor’s licence will expire at the end of 2030 but the corporation will apply for an extension. In addition, it got cabinet approval for a new multipurpose reactor with R1.2bn allocated for it over the medium-term. The reactor will be used for research and development as well as building capacity in the production of nuclear medicine. “It will do everything Safari does, but at an industrial scale,” he said.
Tyabashe said Necsa was at different stages of execution of a R50bn capital programme, which includes the new multipurpose reactor, a new plant for its Pelchem subsidiary and the relocation of its skills academy. Pelchem is a global manufacturer and supplier of commodity and speciality chemicals.
The corporation will explore all sources of funding, including for the SMRs, climate funding or a partner who brings the funds with, he said.
NTP, the subsidiary that manufactures radio isotopes for medical use, must grow its market and extend its scope to include more isotopes, Tyabashe said.
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