This installation, towering at 14 meters, has been manufactured in Poland in collaboration with Katowice-based company Energoinstal SA.
It is the first nuclear reactor module intended to find commercial application in the country.
The module is part of a fully modular power plant project designed to begin providing energy within a few years.
Last Energy is currently partnering with energy companies, industrial partners, and Special Economic Zones (SEZs), or designated areas where business and trade laws are different from the rest of the country, and may offer tax holidays and privileges to attract investment and technology.
Last Energy has inked energy sales agreements with over 50 power plant units across Europe, including 20 in Poland, and has also established collaborations with various SEZs, such as the Katowice, Wałbrzych and Legnica Special Economic Zones, where it is developing its projects.
Bret Kugelmass, founder and CEO of Last Energy, said that the energy transformation awaiting Poland is a “challenge and opportunity for the modern technology sector."
He emphasized the pivotal role of Poland in their European market strategy, citing its geographical position, macroeconomic trends, and the geopolitical context as key factors making it an ideal location to become a regional hub for their technology.
The essential component of the power plant is a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), a light-water reactor utilized in over 300 currently-operating reactors globally.
The Last Energy project, owing to its compact size and 20 MWe power, can be air-cooled and requires an area of only 5 hectares for deployment.
Damian Jamroz, CEO of Last Energy Poland, said that manufacturing the first Small Modular Reactor (SMR) was an “evolutionary step” for Poland’s industrial power sector.
He stated: “The biggest Polish players in the industry may power factories with locally produced clean energy in just a few years. Our technology is also perfectly suited for use as combined heat and power plants, which the Polish heating market is based on. Technologically, there is no barrier to the first Last Energy power plant to be built by 2026. Everything depends on decision-makers at the government level.”
In contrast to other providers in the nuclear energy industry, Last Energy's operations are not dependent on government funding, according to executives.
Projects are financed through access to private investors' capital, and are based on long-term Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with end energy users - contracts between buyers and sellers where the buyer purchases energy at specified tariff rates from the seller.
The company says it has secured funding from investors including First Round Capital, Gigafund Łukasz Nosk, and Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla Motors and SpaceX.
(rt/gs)
Sources: pap-mediaroom.pl
Click on the audio player above for an interview with Bret Kugelmass, founder and CEO of Last Energy, and Damian Jamroz, president of the management Board of Last Energy Polska.