BWRX-300

BWRX-300

Overview

300 MWe Gen III+ boiling-water small modular reactor derived from the NRC-certified ESBWR, using natural circulation and passive safety systems, a 60-year design life, and proven GNF fuel. Designed for a power block that fits within two soccer fields and 24–36 month nth-of-a-kind construction. The first grid-scale SMR under construction in the Western world.

Unit 1 under construction at OPG's Darlington site (construction began May 2025; in service by end of 2030, four units planned); TVA Clinch River construction permit in final NRC review, mandatory hearing held August 13, 2026 with the hearing record closed August 27, 2026 and the commissioners' decision still pending; up to 10 further US units planned under the $40B US–Japan program; new US project with Elementl Power for up to 5 units at Meigs County, Ohio (Early Works Agreement, June 2026); selected or down-selected in Poland (six units agreed at Włocławek), Estonia, Hungary, Saskatchewan, Lithuania (MOU, February 2026) and Bulgaria (JV letter of intent, December 2025); UK Generic Design Assessment completed December 2025; MOU with Hitachi to explore Southeast Asia; lost the competitive selection for Sweden's Ringhals project to Rolls-Royce SMR in June 2026.

Key Specs

Output

300 MWe

Design life

60 years

Construction time (nth-of-a-kind)

~24–36 months, first concrete to fuel-load ready

First-unit cost (Darlington)

CAD $7.7B (~US $5.6B)