SMRs and the “All-of-the-Above" strategy”

As part of the Obama Administration’s “All-of-the-Above" strategy, this week the U.S. Department of Energy announced an award to support a new project to design, license and help commercialize small modular reactors (SMR) in the United States.  The project supported by the award will be led by Babcock & Wilcox (B&W) in partnership with the Tennessee Valley Authority and Bechtel.  Click here: 

The Obama administration’s strategy is a breath of fresh air for the nuclear industry which has most recently been competing against low gas prices. It’s also a step in the right direction not only for the U.S. but for the world's energy programs. This opens up an option for other countries that have limited natural resources and growing populations, such as China and India.

The administration is showing good foresight to fund nuclear when gas prices continue to stay low. It’s too easy to jump on board with the “fad of the day” and take your eyes off other energy production options. 

The jobs to be created by this award are far reaching as other companies and manufacturers focus on furthering small modular reactor efficiency, operations and design.  

There are still challenges to be resolved to make the SMR concept a valid option in the energy arena:   

• Construction costs need to stay competitive with large nuclear and gas plants. 
• The value proposition of the SMRs is a shorter construction time. Getting these plants built in less than three years will be critical for success. 
• O&M costs need to be kept low as well with staffing and overhead costs optimized to match the lower megawatt output.

This announcement is exciting for the nuclear industry as it supports the Energy Department’s professed position that it is, “Committed to supporting research and development that will advance efficient, safe and cost-effective small modular reactor technologies.” 

The fostering of this innovative technology adds another arrow in the quiver of the U.S. as it aims for energy independence.

Hurricane Sandy got me thinking about how knowledge gained in the nuclear industry can be applied to improve the robustness of data center back up power. 

 In contrast to 100 years ago, an important measure of a company’s worth is now in megabytes; this "worth" is housed in data centers. Thus, an uninterrupted power supply for a company’s data center is THE critical component for doing business in the world today.

A lot of progress has been made in improving the uptime for data center power, but as seen this past week, there is room for improvement. 

In addition to tragic loss of life, Hurricane Sandy exposed weaknesses in the power supply to these data centers across the board. From clothing companies to financial services businesses, none appear to have come through unscathed from this event, even those with well-rehearsed continuity plans. Click here to see data center damages. 

It’s pretty well-known that the Fukushima event of 2011 made the nuclear industry -- an industry that stakes its reputation on safety, reliability and protecting the public -- take a hard look at itself. 

Since Fukushima, the nuclear industry has focused rigorously on cataloging knowledge gained -- what the industry is calling “lessons learned” -- to better protect back up power supply and ensure the Fukushima scenario will not play out elsewhere.

The nuclear industry also has a head start in this having started to "bunkerize" its power supply as far back as 9-11 to protect against terrorist attacks. 

Lessons learned from these events have contributed to a program developed to implement the Fukushima task force recommendations, a program called the FLEX Protection Strategy. So my thought is, why not take a page from the FLEX playbook and apply these tools to data center back up power -- with better ways to keep business' data centers up and running when terrible events such at Hurricane Sandy hit.

The basics of FLEX include:

PREPARE YOUR PEOPLE: Rehearse and review emergency plans on a regular basis. Provide satellite communication systems for workers. Expanded your maintenance and testing of equipment.

MULTIPLE LAYERS: Protect fuel supply for back up generators. Generator positioning should be above flood levels.

REGIONAL CENTERS: Use regional centers to provide additional emergency equipment in off site support centers to provide another layer of safety and ensure prolonged reliable operation. 

There's more good information in the details. Click here for the FLEX protection strategy, click here. 

Nuclear plants in Hurricane Sandy’s path came through well as a result of these new procedures showing us that the nuclear industry is a great resource for those charged with preserving and protecting our power.