SMR NUCLEAR FOR HUNGARY

WNN - Friday, 1 August 2025 - Hungarian nuclear energy development firm Hunatom has signed a letter of intent with Synthos Green Energy to establish a pre-framework for joint activities relating to project development for up to 10 GE Vernova Hitachi BWRX-300 small modular reactors.

Poland's Synthos Green Energy is project developer for BWRX-300 small modular reactors (SMRs) in the region. The signing of the agreement took place in the presence of Hungarian Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Peter Szijjartó, US Chargé d’Affaires Robert Palladino, and Polish Chargé d’Affaires Jacek Śladewski.

Szijjártó said that with the increasing electricity demand there was a need to sustain energy security by increasing nuclear capacity and "SMRs are the ideal solution for us". He announced the launch of preliminary work in Hungary to prepare for the introduction of SMRs, which "encompasses technology, infrastructure, financial, and legislative measures" under the letter of intent.

Hunatom is part of the Paks II Group.

The US Embassy in Hungary said "the signing marks a major milestone for the US Foundational Infrastructure for Responsible Use of Small Modular Reactor Technology (FIRST) Program, which co-funded a two-part licensing and regulatory study for SGE in Poland. Under the FIRST Program, the US SMR Pan-European Regional Interest Nuclear Group or SPRING project is now poised to facilitate deliveries of more BWRX300s in the region, through a fleet deployment approach that will increase efficiency and reliability and lower costs".

Palladino said: "The United States and Hungary are deepening our relationship across the board: in defence, in commerce, in space, and in energy. This is no accident. We are doing so because we share interests, and more importantly, because we share values: sovereignty, freedom, and the right to chart our own course.

"Hungary has made a clear and sovereign choice to invest in its energy future with trusted partners. And the United States is proud to be one of them. We are not here to impose; we are here to invest."

Synthos Green Energy's Michał Sołowow said: "I am here as an entrepreneur, but also as a Polish patriot. As a patriot, I know that our agreement is a step towards increasing the energy independence of the entire region, including Poland and Hungary."

Hungary currently has four operable reactors generating about half its electricity. The Paks plant, 100 kilometres south of Budapest, comprises four Russian-supplied VVER-440 pressurised water reactors, which started up between 1982 and 1987. An inter-governmental agreement was signed in early 2014 for Russian enterprises and their international sub-contractors to supply two VVER-1200 reactors at Paks II. First concrete has been scheduled for the first unit for later this year, or in 2026.

The BWRX-300 is a 300 MWe water-cooled, natural circulation SMR with passive safety systems that leverages the design and licensing basis of GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy's 1500 MW ESBWR boiling water reactor.

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