Assessment of Small Modular Reactor Fuel Cost

Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) offer to the nuclear industry a simple, standardized, and safe option for new reactor builds as they are factory built, requiring smaller initial capital investment with shorter construction times. SMRs also promise competitive economy when compared with the current fleet. Construction cost estimates for a majority of the projects, which are mostly in their design stages, are proprietary, but fuel configuration, fuel enrichment, average burn-up, and thermal efficiency are publicly available for most SMR projects. This paper calculates the fuel cost when generating electricity, for selected SMR plants, including optimal tails depletion. The results are compared between one another and with current Light Water Reactors (LWR), providing a rough comparison of a long-term economics once the capital investment is amortized.