Polish company SGE hopes to deploy 14 BWRX-300 reactors in U.K.

Synthos Green Energy, a development and investment company headquartered in Warsaw, Poland, has announced a proposal to deploy 14 GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy BWRX-300 small modular reactors at three multiunit sites in the United Kingdom. SGE has established SGE SMR UK Limited as its dedicated vehicle for this U.K. project, which reportedly could see private capital investment of up to £35 billion (about $46 billion).

Corporate partners in the proposed project include Aecon Group, Etara, Fermi Development, Google Cloud, Laing O'Rourke, and Samsung C&T. An unnamed "experienced nuclear operator" is also involved, according to SGE.

Elsewhere in Europe: SGE was founded in 2019 and is currently involved in partnerships and projects in several European countries, including its flagship BWRX-300 project planned for three sites in Poland in collaboration with the state-owned energy corporation Orlen (through the joint venture Orlen Synthos Green Energy).

SGE's deployment of SMRs in Poland is a part of the Polish government's goal of generating 23 percent of the nation's electricity from nuclear energy by 2040. The country currently has no nuclear power plants.

SGE founder and billionaire investor Michał Sołowow said of his company's U.K. project, "We are focused on delivering efficient, safe, affordable, and clean nuclear energy power at fleet scale. The U.K. is home to one of the world's most experienced nuclear workforce [sic] and the British government has provided a clear path to market with the Advanced Nuclear Framework. Because of this, I am confident we will set a new standard for nuclear development by combining our disruptive business model with the BWRX-300's tenth-generation proven technology. We will rely strongly on the U.K. supply chain; it is a critical element for our project."

BWRX-300s in Britain: SGE stated that it has submitted an application to British authorities under the U.K. Advanced Nuclear Framework for the deployment of a fleet of BWRX-300 reactors that would have a total capacity of 4.2 GW and remain operational for at least 60 years. According to SGE, the reactors could meet 11 percent of the United Kingdom's electricity demand, powering the equivalent of 8 million homes. However, with the investment that SGE hopes to get from Google Cloud, the SMRs could also be used to power data centers.

The first of the three British sites would host six BWRX-300s. The two subsequent sites, "to follow in quick succession," SGE said, would host the remaining eight units. The company has not yet revealed the names of the hoped-for sites, though the Guardian has reported that one of the locations is "the Oldbury site in south Gloucestershire, which was earmarked earlier this year for the development of SMRs under the government's advanced nuclear framework."

Generic design assessment steps: The SGE BWRX-300 project takes advantage of previous work by GE Vernova Hitachi to advance its SMR design through the U.K. regulatory process. In December 2025, the BWRX-300 successfully completed Step 2 of the three-step U.K. generic design assessment, which is conducted by the Office for Nuclear Regulation, the Environment Agency of England, and Natural Resources Wales.

In Step 2, a reactor's design is assessed for any concerns or technical issues that do not meet regulatory expectations. In Step 3, the Office for Nuclear Regulation issues a design acceptance confirmation, and the Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales issue a statement of design acceptability if the agencies conclude that the reactor design can be safely and securely built, operated, and eventually decommissioned while meeting environmental protection standards.