How Has the Small Modular Reactor Market Evolved Historically and What is its Current Size?
The small modular reactor market has seen considerable growth due to a variety of factors.
• In the past few years, the market size for small modular reactors has seen tremendous expansion. It's expected to rise from $0.27 billion in 2024 to $0.67 billion in 2025, with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 152.1%.
The surge in the historical phase can be associated with concerns over energy security, policy assistance, growing demand for electricity, ambition for decrease in carbon emissions, and necessity for decentralized power production.
What Is The Projected Growth Of The Small Modular Reactor Template Market?
The small modular reactor market is expected to maintain its strong growth trajectory in upcoming years.
• The anticipated increase in the small modular reactor market size over the coming years is expected to be significant, with an estimated value of $2.71 billion in 2029 and a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 41.7%.
This growth throughout the forecasted period can be linked to a rising focus on sustainable energy solutions, the need for versatile power generation alternatives, increased interest in nuclear power, mounting concerns over climate change, and growing industrial applications. The forecast period also sees forthcoming trends such as the emergence of new market participants and technologies, digitalization and automation integration, the customization and modularization of reactor blueprints, an increasing role to aid renewable energy integration, and the advent of hybrid energy systems.
What Are The Key Drivers Fueling Growth In The Small Modular Reactor Market?
The escalating crisis related to energy security is predicted to fuel the growth of the small modular reactor market in the future. A crisis linked to energy security arises when regions or countries encounter significant obstacles in satisfying their energy needs in a reliable and affordable way. Small modular reactors (SMRs) provide the ability to alter power output flexibly, granting operators the capacity to quickly vary electricity generation to align with the specific requirements of isolated communities or industries. This flexibility includes the ability to operate at partial load, or rapidly scale up or down as per the fluctuating demand, thus ensuring a stable and dependable power supply. For instance, in November 2022, data released by the International Energy Agency (IEA), an autonomous intergovernmental organization headquartered in France, predicted an increase of about 20 million people lacking electrical access in 2022, reaching an estimated 774 million individuals globally, marking a rise from 754 million in 2021. Therefore, the escalating energy security crisis is contributing to the expansion of the small modular reactor market.
What Are The Principal Market Segments In The Global Small Modular Reactor Industry?
The small modular reactor market covered in this report is segmented –
1) By Reactor Type: Light Water Reactor (LWR), Fast Neutron Reactor (FNR), Heavy Water Reactor (HWR), Other Reactor Types
2) By Power Rating: Up To 100 MW, 101 To 200 MW, 201 To 300 MW
3) By Deployment: Single Module Power Plant, Multi Module Power Plant
4) By Application: Power Generation, Desalination, Process Heat, Industrial, Hydrogen Production
Subsegments:
1) By Light Water Reactor (LWR): Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), Boiling Water Reactor (BWR)
2) By Fast Neutron Reactor (FNR): Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (SFR), Lead-cooled Fast Reactor (LFR)
3) By Heavy Water Reactor (HWR): Candu Reactor
4) By Other Reactor Types: High-Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR), Molten Salt Reactor (MSR), Gas-cooled Fast Reactor (GFR)
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What Emerging Trends Are Influencing The Growth Of The Small Modular Reactor Market?
Key players in the small modular reactor market are concentrating their efforts on creating innovative products or solutions such as single-loop pressurized water reactors (PWR) in a bid to maintain their competitiveness. Characterized by its compact and scalable design which typically varies from tens to few hundred megawatts, this type of nuclear reactor provides improved safety mechanisms, deployment flexibility, and potential cost benefits compared to conventional large-scale nuclear power plants. To illustrate, Westinghouse Electric Company, a US-based nuclear power firm providing nuclear products and services, unveiled the AP300 in May 2023. This small modular reactor incorporates integral pressurized water reactor (iPWR) technology, passive safety systems, and a modular design, essentially transforming nuclear energy with its compact dimensions, superior safety measures, and rapid deployment. It has a significant effect on the small modular reactor (SMR) market by improving safety, versatility, and cost efficiency, thus shaping the future landscape of nuclear energy generation.
Who Are the Key Players In The Small Modular Reactor Market?
Major companies operating in the small modular reactor market are:
• General Electric Company
• Hitachi
• Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO )
• State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC)
• Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.
• OKBM Afrikantov (Rosatom)
• Bechtel Corporation
• Rolls-Royce plc.
• Fluor Corporation
• IHI Corporation
• Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP)
• SNC-Lavalin Group
• Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions
• Brookfield Asset Management
• General Atomics Corporation
• Curtiss-Wright Corporation
• BWX Technologies Inc.
• Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL)
• China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC)
• U-Battery Developments Ltd. (Urenco Group)
• Babcock & Wilcox
• Tokamak Energy
• NuScale Power LLC.
• ARC Energy LLC
• Terrestrial Energy Inc.
• Holtec International
• Kairos Power
• TerraPower LLC.
What Are The Regional Insights Into The Small Modular Reactor Market?
Asia-Pacific was the largest region in the small modular reactor market in 2024 and is expected to be the fastest-growing region in the forecast period. The regions covered in the small modular reactor market report are Asia-Pacific, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Middle East, Africa.
