France's Naarea and the UK-headquartered Newcleo have announced a strategic and industrial partnership designed "to support all players in their industrial, technological, scientific and regulatory development" of Generation IV fast neutron reactors.

The companies say that the partnership will be open to others to join and said it will focus on key areas where there are common interests, such as gaining access to the used nuclear fuel from conventional nuclear reactors that their Gen-IV reactors are designed to use as part of their efforts to close the fuel cycle.

Other areas of cooperation are the development of a joint research and development platform for areas such as heat exchangers and materials, and working together to unlock financing and funding for both the research and for the fuel cycle infrastructure that will be required.

They also propose to cooperate on the industrial development front with regulators and on "providing access to scientific computing tools particularly for safety demonstrations, making test centre sites available for future prototypes and developing and implementing shared test facilities".

Newcleo is planning a 30 MWe lead-cooled fast neutron test reactor in France in 2030, with a 200 MWe first-of-a-kind commercial unit planned for the UK in 2032. Naarea is developing a 40 MWe/80 MWt molten salt fast neutron reactor with a target of 2027 for a prototype and by 2030 for construction of a manufacturing facility and launch of series production.

Stefano Buono, Newcleo chairman and CEO, said that by joining forces the two companies were "further encouraging the development and deployment of Gen-IV nuclear technology in Europe. This collaboration reinforces our shared commitment to innovation and sustainability in the nuclear sector".

Jean-Luc Alexandre, chairman and founder of Naarea, said the two firms were "creating momentum to accelerate their development by providing a joint and coordinated response to the demands of public authorities for a unified voice to express common needs. Our two companies want to simplify the work of public authorities and ultimately promote the development and deployment of Gen-IV nuclear power in Europe, against a backdrop of strong global competition".