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high-temperature and molten salt systems targeting in- ular reactor (SMR) designs. These are smaller than con- dustrial heat and cogeneration; fast-spectrum designs with ventional gigawatt-scale nuclear plants and offer several longer-term fuel-cycle potential; and microreactors aimed advantages. There are 83 SMR designs at various stages at smaller, remote, or mission-critical loads. This matters of development or deployment worldwide (Figure 3). commercially because different reactor types imply differ- These included water-cooled reactors , high-temperature ent safety cases, fuel cycles, operating temperatures, end- gas-cooled reactors , liquid metal-cooled fast neutron spec- use markets and licensing pathways. trum reactors , molten salt reactors , and microreactors .

The commercial value of these designs also depends on SMRs offer several advantages over traditional large-scale what energy products they can supply (Figure 2). Floating nuclear power plants. Standardized designs facilitate cost re- nuclear is often discussed as a power-generation technol- ductions through replication and accumulated operational ogy, but several concepts are designed for broader multi- experience, extending benefts beyond reactor design to in- utility use, including heat and desalinated water. This is clude associated delivery processes. Modular construction particularly important for islands, ports, remote coastal methods enable the pre-fabrication of reactor components regions, and industrial clusters where electricity demand is off-site in factories with higher productivity levels and im- only one part of the infrastructure challenge. proved quality control compared to traditional on-site con-

This output breakdown demonstrates that foating nu- struction methods. clear should not be assessed only on a dollar-per-megawatt Modularity also allows for incremental power additions basis. In some markets, the bankability of a project may de- based on demand. For offshore power markets, this fex- pend on stacking several revenue streams – electricity sales, ibility is commercially relevant – customers may not need heat supply, desalinated water, industrial energy services, a single large baseload plant, but rather a scalable, modular grid resilience payments, or long-term capacity contracts. source of frm low-carbon power that can be matched to the needs of an island grid, industrial cluster, remote mine, port,

THE WIDER SMR MARKET desalination facility, or offshore energy hub.

Most current FNPP concepts are based on small mod- Refueling cycles are also an important part of the value proposition. Depending on the design, foating SMRs

Figure 2 may require refueling only ev- ery three to seven years, with some advanced concepts be- ing developed with fuel cycles extending up to 30 years. For countries that currently rely on regular fossil fuel imports, this offers a pathway toward greater energy independence and lower exposure to fuel price volatility.

Importantly, smaller core inventories reduce radiation exposure risks both on-site for workers and off-site by limit- ing potential accident conse- quences and emergency plan- ning zone requirements.

IDENTIFYING PRIOR-

ITY MARKETS FOR

FLOATING NUCLEAR

The analysis began with a

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