Advanced Modular Reactors: Criticality Tests

Viscount Trenchard Excerpts
Tuesday 19th March 2024

(7 months, 2 weeks ago)

Lords Chamber
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Viscount Trenchard Portrait Viscount Trenchard (Con)
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My Lords, the noble Viscount makes a very good point. Can my noble friend the Minister explain why Japan’s high-temperature gas-cooled reactor technology, endorsed by my right honourable friend Greg Hands in 2021—which is inherently safe, internationally licensed and has been operating for more than 10 years—has been consigned to the back burner as part of the AMR research, development and demonstration programme? This technology needs to be brought forward into the GDA process now, or it will be too late to make its much-needed contribution to the decarbonisation of industry.

Lord Callanan Portrait Lord Callanan (Con)
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I refer my noble friend to the answer I gave to my noble friend Lady Bloomfield. We have selected high-temperature gas reactors for research and development purposes in the AMR R&D and demonstration programme.