D. Goodman Consultant, USA

20.1 Introduction

The planet is experiencing a combination of increased economic output from the global South with acute and cumulative effects of climate change that affect poorer countries the most, a heightened general awareness of the disparities of quality of life, and a deficit of social trust (UNDP, 2013). The current global predicament demands a revaluation.

Developing countries present distilled instances of systemic problems and solutions. Similarly, small modular reactors (SMRs) distil the operational experience and lessons learned, from submarines and large reactors and hazards; and incorporate cooperation with natural processes, such as gravity, evaporation and condensation, in their concepts and designs. SMRs are to nuclear as ‘developing countries’ are to the world: a concentrated instance of the whole; and they belong together.

Generic development issues are intensified in the case of nuclear. SMR deployment brings into focus poignant, generic issues of development, such as debt, national priority, natural resource endowments and industrial planning, climate change, technological competence, the need for durable institutions, educational and human resources, and in some cases limited capital. Nevertheless, SMRs’ intrinsic technical features, such as their size, modularity, simplified operation and inherent safety features, make them particularly well suited to the circumstances of developing countries.

As discussed in Chapter 3 of this Handbook, SMRs are a robust, ‘forgiving’ nuclear power technology, designed for simplicity and plant resilience, and to incorporate inherently or ‘passively’ safe features such as natural circulation for core cooling, incorporating most primary components in a single vessel, long coping periods to handle interrupted backup power supply, and generally designed for below-grade or barge deployment with the intended result of much reduced risk of accident, and fewer and less acute consequences in case of accident (Carelli, 2014; Ingersoll, 2011).

A promising feature for the economics of wide SMR deployment in developing countries is the modularity of some designs, which refers to the incorporation of all major safety-significant systems within one module, to the potential of modules to be standardized and factory-built in series, with minimum site-specific design

Handbook of Small Modular Nuclear Reactors. http://dx. doi. Org/10.1533/9780857098535.4.485

Copyright © 2015 D. Goodman. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

and construction. It also refers to the possibility of scaling-up power production in increments, building and putting additional modules into service over time, which would reduce the initial capital outlay and overall investment risk (Barkatullah, 2011; Kessides and Kuznetsov, 2012). There is also potential for SMR components to be manufactured indigenously, with a corresponding positive impact on industry.

In themselves and by analogy, SMRs can become the catalyst for development and capability: ‘There is no country in the world that has made significant development without embracing nuclear technology. Not just because nuclear generates electricity in an affordable way, but if you are able to demystify the mysteries and the myths surrounding nuclear technology, then you can manufacture and process anything.’ (Ayacko, 2012). Development and SMRs could have a synergistic relationship, with potential for these small reactors to be as disproportionately important to developing countries as are mobile telephones and air travel.

This chapter will mention the ‘capabilities approach’ to human development, as a foundational concept; look at various characteristics of developing countries for which SMR deployment is suitable; and discuss development and some associated trade-offs that affect SMR deployment. Although this chapter affirms SMRs as a ‘counterfactual choice’ — what one would have chosen if one had the choice — for energy in developing countries, some alternative choices and potential consequences will be discussed.

The fulcrum of the argument is the opportunity cost incurred by the continued use of greenhouse gas (GHG)-emitting and costly fuels, once an SMR is viable for deployment in countries that disproportionately suffer the effects of climate change and lack energy security in the face of high and volatile fuel costs, while hampered by low income or high debt.

Looking ahead, some obstacles to SMR deployment, and innovations that could address them, will be identified. The chapter concludes on the need for a revised understanding of the wide context of SMR deployment and developing countries.