British SMR company part-owned by ČEZ gets green light for first European reactors

British company Rolls-Royce SMR, co-owned by Czech energy company ČEZ, will build the first small modular reactors (SMRs) in Europe. It signed an agreement to this effect today with UK government body Great British Energy - Nuclear, according to a Rolls-Royce SMR press release. The first phase of construction will create 3,000 jobs, Energy Live News reports.

The contract covers detailed design, planning and regulatory work. It enables work to begin immediately on delivering three small modular reactors (SMRs). Rolls-Royce SMR will build them at the Wylfa site on the island of Anglesey in north Wales.

Rolls-Royce SMR was selected as the preferred bidder for the project in June 2025. The UK government has allocated £2.6 billion (CZK 73 billion) to it. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer then announced in November 2025 that the first SMRs in Britain would be built at the Wylfa site.

Today’s agreement allows the company to develop a design tailored to the specific site and order key components from suppliers. It also provides the certainty needed to launch the recruitment programme required to carry out this work and successfully deliver the first three units.

"We are changing the way nuclear projects are delivered to provide greater certainty on cost and schedule through a standardised, factory-based approach. This project is important for the United Kingdom’s energy security and will strengthen our company and the British supply chain," said Rolls-Royce SMR CEO Chris Cholerton.

"This agreement is a watershed moment for nuclear energy," said Great British Energy – Nuclear CEO Simon Roddy.

The three-unit project is expected to generate at least 1.4 gigawatts (GW) of electricity, enough to supply around three million households for more than 60 years.

Rolls-Royce SMR would also like to build up to six small modular reactors in Czechia later in cooperation with ČEZ. The first of them is expected to be built next to the Temelín Nuclear Power Plant around the middle of the 2030s. ČEZ owns around 20 percent of Rolls-Royce SMR.