Mishra reported in late January 2025 that the Atomic Energy of Canada Limited’s (AECL) is offering a SMR that is predicted to survive all postulated accident scenarios without human intervention.
AECL maintained that the SLOWPOKE family of reactors is the ‘safe by physics’
characteristics of the design, which simplify operations and licensing.
Nuclear laboratories in Canada have shown interest in exploring the commercialization of small reactor designs. A Request for Expression of Interest (RFEOI) has been issued to understand the market interest in licensing Atomic Energy of Canada Limited’s (AECL) SLOWPOKE and Nuclear Battery reactor technologies for commercialization.
AECL has revealed that its SLOWPOKE (Safe Low-Power ‘Kritical’ Experiment -) technology is a family of low-pressure, pool-type reactors that includes the SLOWPOKE-2, which is a small, simple, inexpensive, and inherently safe reactor design that has years of operations experience and has been successfully licensed and operated safely in Canada for decades.
Technology developers and other interested stakeholders have been invited to submit their insights and feedback about the innovative reactor designs and technologies with the latest RFEOI.
Next generation of nuclear reactors
Lou Riccoboni, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) Vice-President of Corporate Affairs and Business Development, stated that through the company’s program of work, including the small modular reactor (SMR) siting program and Canadian Nuclear Research Initiative (CNRI), CNL has leveraged its resources to help develop and deploy the next generation of nuclear reactors here in Canada.
“With that goal in mind, we see real opportunity and value in AECL’s SLOWPOKE and Nuclear Battery designs, which have tremendous potential to help combat climate change, and to advance research in physics and health sciences,” added Riccoboni.
He highlighted that this RFEOI process allows CNL to engage technology developers to determine whether there is commercial interest in exploiting these innovative designs, which would help advance these important causes while making the most of AECL’s Intellectual Property on behalf of Canadian taxpayers.
Nuclear Battery technology
While having never advanced to construction, the Nuclear Battery technology is a solid-state micro-reactor concept that would be able to produce a combination of electricity (up to 600 kWe) and heat (up to 2400 kWth at ~400°C) for up to 15 years without refueling, and which could also survive all postulated accident scenarios without human intervention, according to AECL.
It has also been claimed that the AECL Nuclear Battery is appropriate for off-grid applications. The concept, largely envisioned for electricity or industrial heat processes, was developed and advanced by AECL in the 1980s and 90s.
The initial research indicates that both reactors may have broad appeal within the international technology development community. AECL and CNL are now interested in learning more about market interest in these technologies, including reactor design, engineering and sales, as well as end-use applications, such as district heating, electrical generation, isotope production and neutron activation analysis, according to a press release.
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The AECL maintained that the SLOWPOKE family of reactors is the ‘safe by physics’ characteristics of the design, which simplify operations and licensing, and allow unattended operation for up to 24 hours.
These reactors have been utilized safely for approximately five decades in Canada and Jamaica, on university campuses and government installations, for applications that include neutron activation analysis, neutron radiography, and education. The success of small SLOWPOKE research reactors has also motivated the exploration of the potential for larger versions of the concept, which could be used for district heating, as per the release.
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