South Africa expects to lift the care and maintenance status of its Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) by the first quarter of next year or even earlier, energy minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said on Wednesday.
Once considered a global leader in the development of small modular nuclear reactors, South Africa halted its PBMR research in 2010 after spending more than R10-billion and before building a planned demonstration model.
“We are far advanced in our internal processes to make the case to lift the care and maintenance on the PBMR,” Ramokgopa told a media briefing.
State-owned power utility Eskom currently operates the continent’s only commercial nuclear power station near Cape Town. Egypt is building its own plant, while countries including Namibia, Niger and Ghana are exploring nuclear options.
“We are seeing huge opportunities around the world, with major players in data centres the biggest investors in SMRs (small modular reactors),” he added.
South Africa’s 2025 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), expected to be published this week, outlines more than 105GW of new generation capacity by 2039. Renewable energy is projected to account for more than half of this, as the country seeks to reduce its dependence on coal.
New nuclear generation capacity of 5.2GW is foreseen, with gas at 16GW, wind at 34GW and solar PV at 25GW by 2039.
Suitors
South Africa has ambitions to reinvigorate its nuclear industry, with the IRP suggesting that this industrialisation plan will determine the merits of 10GW of new nuclear generation capacity.
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Ramokgopa said China, South Korea, the US and Russia are among countries that could partner with the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation on developing small modular reactors. “We don’t think we will run out of suitors who can partner with us on the PBMR.” — (c) 2025 Reuters
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