Nuclear-powered launch for Cottam data centre project
Up to four modular reactors could be built in Nottinghamshire under a joint proposal submitted to the government this week.
Nuclear technology group Holtec and landowner EDF have launched plans to construct up to four SMR-300 small modular reactors at the former coal power plant in Cottam, which is earmarked as a hub for a huge data centre development.
In an announcement made in September last year, EDF, Holtec and Tritax said they intended to use nuclear reactors to provide 1.3 gigawatts of “clean, secure power” to advanced data centres planned for the 900-acre site, which forms part of the Trent Valley Supercluster, submitted as an AI Growth Zone to the UK government.
The plans submitted by Holtec and EDF are one of the earliest schemes to come forward since the government launched its Advanced Nuclear Framework in February, a policy established to accelerate deployment of advanced nuclear technologies and encourage greater private-sector participation in new nuclear development.
The two companies have also signed Heads of Terms to establish a joint venture to advance the project’s development.
“Our long-standing partnership with EDF, combined with the opportunity created by the UK’s Advanced Nuclear Framework, provides a strong foundation for advancing SMR-300 deployment at Cottam,” said Dr. Rick Springman, president of Holtec International.
“This submission represents an important milestone for the project and for advanced nuclear energy in Great Britain. Holtec plans to substantially expand its presence in the UK with a significantly larger operation center and is evaluating a manufacturing plant to build nuclear equipment in the country.”
Operations at the former coal-fired power plant near Retford shut down in 2019, before the site was sold to EDF for £398m in October 2000. Demolition work began in 2021.
Simone Rossi, chief executive of EDF UK, said the area had the potential to continue to play a key role in the UK’s energy system for decades to come.
“The Cottam project supports the UK government’s ambition to expand nuclear capacity and will facilitate significant re-development of a region that has given so much to the UK through its coal heritage,” he said.
“We are delighted to be working with Holtec International on the development of small modular reactors in the UK.”
