Westinghouse Electric Company, Burns and McDonnell and General Dynamics Electric Boat will collaboratively team to support the Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor (SMR) application for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Small Modular Reactor Funding Opportunity.

Michael Anness, SMR product manager at Westinghouse Electric Company, announced the teaming arrangement at the Platts SMR conference in Arlington, Va. "We are very pleased to welcome Burns and McDonnell and Electric Boat as members of our vendor team to support the Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor design effort, and the ultimate deployment of a Westinghouse SMR at Ameren Missouri's Callaway Energy Center," said Anness.

"We feel that this collaboration is an excellent fit for the team and will tremendously enhance our capabilities to provide licensing, construction and operational certainty that no other U.S. SMR supplier applying for DOE investment funds can match."

"Developing and building these next-generation reactors is a transformative opportunity to create jobs and grow Missouri's economy, and we're thrilled that Missouri-based Burns and McDonnell will be playing an important role in this partnership," Missouri Governor Jay Nixon said.

"Westinghouse's application has unequivocal support from the state of Missouri, all of our electric-utility providers, labor organizations, and our powerhouse research universities. Adding a world-class engineering firm like Burns and McDonnell to the team only makes our application stronger. We are extremely pleased that Westinghouse has turned to this landmark Missouri company for this pivotal role on the architectural and engineering team."

Department of Energy (DOE) SMR investment funds will be awarded to SMR projects that have the most potential and promise to be licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and achieve commercial operation by 2022. The cost-share agreements will span a five-year period and, subject to Congressional appropriations, provide a total investment of approximately $900 million, with at least 50 percent provided by private industry.

Westinghouse submitted its application to the DOE last Friday, May 18, on behalf of the Ameren Missouri-led NexStart SMR Alliance. The addition of Electric Boat and Burns and McDonnell to the Westinghouse team will further support and provide additional confidence to the Westinghouse SMR Project in its pursuit of the DOE funding opportunity.

Burns and McDonnell, Missouri's oldest and largest engineering firm will provide architectural and engineering support to design the power systems of the class-leading 225 MWe Westinghouse SMR.

The company's more than 110 years of experience with all generation types includes an expansive and broad wealth of knowledge and expertise in new plant design, existing plant upgrades, operating plant issues, and design and analysis of myriad complex systems.

Electric Boat has joined the Westinghouse-led team to provide modular design support, leveraging the expertise attained over more than 60 years of nuclear-powered submarine design and manufacturing to the benefit of commercial nuclear programs. Electric Boat's specialized expertise in modular design will facilitate the achievement of factory-build efficiencies never before seen in nuclear energy deployment.