Energy futureSodium-Cooled Fast Reactor Prototype Development, MOU

The U.S Department of Energy (DOE), the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) and Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) have expanded cooperation to coordinate Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactor Prototype development. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by the three agencies establishes a collaborative framework with the ultimate goal of deploying sodium-cooled fast reactor prototypes. A sodium-cooled fast reactor uses liquid sodium to transfer heat, burning the plutonium and other transuranic elements in the process producing clean, safe nuclear power, less waste, and increasing non-proliferation goals. The United States, France, and Japan currently cooperate within the framework of the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) which seeks to expand the use of clean and affordable nuclear energy, as well as in the Generation IV International Forum (GIF) which furthers the research and development of future nuclear energy systems. The sodium-cooled fast reactor technology is one of the most advanced nuclear technologies being researched to date and could potentially be used as an advanced recycling reactor, one of the key components of GNEP. A prototype reactor is the first step to demonstrate the feasibility of the sodium-cooled fast reactor technology to accomplish GNEP objectives and to test advanced technologies that would allow these reactors to be built and operated by private industry on a large scale.

The three countries will work together to establish design goals and high-level requirements for sodium-cooled fast reactor prototypes; identify common safety principles and key technical innovations to reduce capital, operating and maintenance costs. This cooperation will enable important discussion on power levels, reactor types, fuel types and an appropriate timetable for the potential deployment of prototype facilities. The participants plan to pursue joint infrastructure development activities to leverage existing, refurbished and new facilities to support development of the prototype reactors. This could include facilities used for component or safety testing, fuel development, or irradiation and evaluation of materials. There also exists the potential for additional countries to participate in this cooperation. In signing the MOU, each of the parties affirms its intent to develop advanced fast reactor prototypes according to its respective national program’s objectives, and recognizes that each country’s individual development of sodium-cooled fast reactor technology should not be duplicative. This cooperation will utilize the technical expertise and resources required to deploy sodium-cooled fast reactor prototypes.