Calogena is offering a 30 thermal MW water-cooled SMR (Small Modular Reactor), specifically designed to decarbonize district heating.
Its simple and compact design, the volume of the core is less than one cubic meter, means that systems and components can be factory-assembled and then transported to the installation site, making it shorter and less expensive to build than large power reactors.
The Calogena concept is based on “pool-type” research reactor technology, of which there are hundreds in operation around the world.
A Calogena module would have a very limited footprint: 3,000 m2 for the land and less than 1,000 m2 for the buildings.
The module does not need a major water or electricity supply. What’s more, refuelling requires just one lorry every two years, compared with dozens every day for a wood-fired solution.
By focusing on district heating, Calogena’s design is optimised to serve it. The reactor is capable of load following according to the needs of the network, and of ramping up quickly.
150x less powerful than conventional reactors
Lower than a coffee machine or a bicycle tire
No pump and no need for external cooling
2g of CO2 per kWh, the lowest-emission heat possible
The water-cooled Calogena reactor is based on technologies that have been mastered and proven for several decades. Its design is derived from the pool-type research reactors that have been in service around the world for decades.
Operating at low pressure (6 bars, i.e. less than a bike tyre) and low temperature (100 °C), the direct use of heat and the very limited number of auxiliary systems make the concept intrinsically simpler and safer than any conventionnal reactor. By way of comparison, the large power reactors currently in service operate at 155 bar and over 300 °C.
Calogena uses the same fuel as conventional reactors, but in a shortened form.
Calogena has chosen the “rod” type fuel commonly used in French nuclear industry, a well-established solution. This positions Calogena as a technologically and industrially mature project.
Calogena’s core will use a shortened version of the rod fuel utilized in numerous power reactors globally and in France’s nuclear power plants. It will utilize 3.4% low-enriched uranium pellets along with the same structural elements used in these reactors.
Using a Calogena module for heating over a lifetime creates less than 80 mL of waste, equivalent to less than a cup of coffee. The used fuel integrates seamlessly into the current cycle.
30 MW
thermal power
20 000
households supplied
with a Calogena module
2030
start of production
Calogena believes it will be in a position to deploy its solutions from 2030 for local authorities wishing to build the city of tomorrow.