Westinghouse Electric Company, a group company of Toshiba Corporation, said it will apply to the US Department of Energy (DOE) for investment funds to license the development of small modular reactor (SMR) technologies.
The plan comes after the final funding opportunity announcement (FOA), issued by the government, for investment funds worth up to $452m.
The DOE plans to consider SMR applications that incorporate passive safety features and can be licensed to achieve a commercial operation date on a domestic site by 2022.
The final FOA was recently issued by the US Department of Energy.
Westinghouse president and chief executive officer Aris Candris said the company will apply for the DOE’s small modular reactor investment funds with a consortium of utilities.
"This federal support will provide the potential to expand the nation’s options for nuclear power as well as to further the nation’s competitive edge in the global clean energy race," added Aris.
Based on the company’s AP1000 reactor design, the Westinghouse SMR, a 225 MWe, integral pressurised water reactor, can also be coupled with other energy sources, including renewables and fossil energy, to produce multiple energy end products.