OPG, OSGE expand SMR deal

Ontario Power Generation (OPG) and Poland’s ORLEN Synthos Green Energy (OSGE) have signed a letter of intent that opens the way for the Canadian company to provide OSGE with a number of services needed to implement and safely operate small modular reactors (SMRs) in Poland.

This is based on an earlier agreement announced in June 2023. OPG, through its subsidiary Laurentis Energy Partners, which already supports OSGE in its work on the preliminary safety report (PSAR). In November 2024, Laurentis Energy Partners signed a $40m agreement with OSGE to prepare a PSAR for BWRX-300 SMRs.

OSGE plans to build a fleet of BWRX-300 reactors supplied by GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy. The first BWRX-300 is being built at the Darlington New Nuclear Project site in Canada. According to OSGE’s plans, the unit will be launched in Poland at the beginning of the next decade.

The agreement was signed in Warsaw by OPG President & CEO Nicolle Butcher and Vice-Presidents of the OSGE Management Board, Jacek Drózd and Bartosz Fijałkowski The event was attended by Ministry of Industry officials: Wojciech Wrochna, Secretary of State, Government Plenipotentiary for Strategic Energy Infrastructure; and Paweł Gajda, Director of the Department of Nuclear Energy.

Nicolle Butcher noted: “We are honoured by the potential opportunity to help Poland build a fleet of small reactors, while developing our national nuclear supply chains and contributing to economic growth”.

The agreement will facilitate close cooperation between OPG and OSGE, enabling both companies to cooperate on the framework of the commercial model for the development and operation of BWRX-300 reactors in Poland. OPG can provide pre-operational services, including location assessment, project management and consulting services.

OSGE Vice-President Drózd said cooperation with OPG “allows us to feel more confident about building BWRX-300 reactors in Poland. We appreciate OPG’s experience and knowledge in the nuclear industry, as well as progress in the construction of the first BWRX-300 reactor. At ORLEN Synthos Green Energy, we are determined to follow OPG and provide safe, clean and stable energy for our citizens and the Polish industry.”