Rolls-Royce SMR has awarded a contract to the Czech Republic’s ŠKODA JS for the design and supply of control rod drive mechanisms (CRDMs) for its small modular reactors (SMRs). CRDMs are vital for regulating power output and enabling rapid shutdown. ŠKODA JS brings decades of experience in the design, manufacture and qualification of CRDMs for pressurised water reactors.
The Rolls-Royce SMR, a 470 MWe design based on a small pressurised water reactor, is intended to provide consistent baseload generation for at least 60 years. Some 90% of the SMR will be built in factory conditions, limiting on-site activity to assembly of prefabricated, pre-tested, modules which has the potential to drastically shorten build schedules.
The CRDMs will be delivered from ŠKODA JS facilities in Pilsen. Rolls-Royce SMR said the contract will support skilled local employment, provide further opportunities across the European nuclear supply chain and boost export opportunities for UK companies.
“ŠKODA JS has proven capability in delivering one of the most important components in our power plant,” said Rolls-Royce SMR CEO Chris Cholerton. “As one of the few businesses in Europe able to provide this vital component, we are proud to have secured Skoda JS as a strategic supplier, further demonstrating the industrial benefits that this project brings.”
Rolls-Royce SMR and Czech power group ČEZ are already working to deliver the first SMR at the Temelín NPP site in the South Bohemian Region. In August, Rolls-Royce SMR signed a memorandum of understanding enabling preparatory work to begin at two more sites – the Tušimice site in the Ústí nad Labem region and Dětmarovice site in the Moravian-Silesian region underpinning plans to deploy up to 3 GWe of SMR capacity in Czechia. This built on ČEZ Group’s prior investment to acquire a 20% equity stake in Rolls-Royce SMR.
Karel Havlíček, First Deputy Prime Minister of the Czech Republic and Minister of Industry & Trade, said: “Supporting Czech industry is essential for us. Small modular reactors represent a technological opportunity with global reach for our companies. The contracts that Škoda JS has already signed with Rolls-Royce SMR are clear proof of this. Small modular reactors will not only strengthen our country’s energy security and self-sufficiency but also create new jobs and open up new opportunities for follow-on investments.”
Daniel Beneš, Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of ČEZ, said: “The global supply chain for small modular reactors is now taking shape, and it is crucial for our industrial companies to act quickly and now. This is a unique opportunity. If they manage to join this chain right from the start, they can secure attractive contracts for decades to come. I am very pleased that we can already announce the first such contracts. It is precisely ČEZ’s role as a strategic partner and shareholder of Rolls-Royce SMR that is key to these successes for Czech companies. Škoda JS now faces the task of developing a prototype specifically for small modular reactors so that it can subsequently supply them to Rolls-Royce SMR worldwide.”
Karel Bednář, Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of ŠKODA JS, said the contract includes preparations for mass production at ŠKODA JS and the terms of a future contract for the global supply of the control system to all Rolls-Royce SMR reactors. For us, this represents recurring orders worth more than one billion crowns for each SMR in the future.”
Rolls-Royce SMR is also developing SMR sites in the UK and Sweden. In the UK, under contracts with Great British Energy-Nuclear (GBE-N) three units are to be built at the Wylfa site in Anglesey (Wales) selected by the government in November 2025. In April 2026 a two-stage delivery contract was signed with (GBE-N) with deployment scheduled for the mid-2030s.
In Sweden, Videberg Kraft (majority-owned by Vattenfall) selected Rolls-Royce SMR in June to deliver three reactors (1,500 MWe) for the Ringhals site. Early-stage planning and supply chain engagement is underway for deployment in the mid-2030s.
The Czech Republic currently gets about a third of its electricity from the four VVER-440 units at Dukovany, which began operating between 1985 and 1987, and the two VVER-1000 units at Temelín, which began operation in 2000 and 2002.
