Westinghouse eyes old nuclear sites to build small reactors in Italy

U.S. energy group Westinghouse proposed using decommissioned nuclear sites in Italy for the installation of small modular reactors, with the aim to start construction by 2030, a company official said on Tuesday.

The move fits with a shift in Italy's energy policy as the right-wing government led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni looks to revive a sector that has been dormant for decades.

The proposal was made by Fabio Presot, Westinghouse commercial sales manager, during a parliamentary hearing. Italy has four decommissioned nuclear sites.

Edison, the Italian arm of French group EDF, plans to construct two advanced nuclear reactors in Italy by 2040, company executive Lorenzo Mottura told the hearing. The first plant is slated for completion by 2035, and the second by 2040.

The first small modular reactor technologies would be available by the end of this decade and undergo testing in the early 2030s, he added.

Energy Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin announced in October that Italy was in discussions with several groups, including Westinghouse and EDF, as potential partners for a state-backed company to build advanced nuclear reactors.

Nuclear power plants have been prohibited in Italy following referendums in 1987 and 2011.

However, the country is planning to finalise a strategy by the end of 2027 to reintroduce nuclear power, nearly 40 years after it was banned, Fratin said last week.

The government has stated that small modular reactors and advanced modular reactors could aid in the decarbonisation of Italy's most polluting industries, including steel, glass, and tilemaking.