US trade agency eyes small modular reactor cooperation projects in Türkiye

The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) is exploring cooperation opportunities with Türkiye on investments in small modular reactors (SMRs), Deputy Director Thomas Hardy said.

Responding to a question from Anadolu at a Thursday roundtable in Washington, Hardy said the agency plans to prioritize new projects in Türkiye in the coming years, following what he called a “very good meeting” with a Turkish delegation on cyber security in May.

“I think that, looking at the Türkiye program, digital will remain a significant portion of our programming,” he said.

Hardy said he met Türkiye’s energy and natural resources minister this year and that the two sides reached a consensus on the potential key role USTDA could play in SMRs.

“I would be keeping an eye out in the near future for announcements for USTDA both in the public and private sector in nuclear,” he noted.

Hardy said Turkish officials had highlighted the importance of nuclear energy in meeting the country’s need for base-load power. He added that USTDA has a “long history of success in Türkiye’s geothermal development,” including through geothermal and digital infrastructure projects.

“I think it’s that history of success that has made the Ministry of Energy want to work more closely with USTDA to help American companies to recognize the opportunities that exist in Türkiye for energy deployment,” he said.

Hardy said US industry is still in the early stages of SMR development, with only some initial installations completed and a long road ahead.

“USTDA’s job is to seed the ground for countries to be able to make those investment decisions when these reactors are ready for commercial deployment, fleet deployment,” he mentioned.

Hardy said many large Turkish private-sector organizations have the industrial capacity to benefit from nuclear-powered heating processes and energy production.

“I think part of our work will be working with our Turkish government counterparts to make sure the regulations are in place to support deployment of SMRs,” he said.

He added that USTDA could help its private-sector partners in Türkiye assess how nuclear energy and SMRs could provide base-load power generation and heat production for the country’s industrial capacity.