LONDON/DOHA: The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is investing £85 million for a 10 percent stake in technology start-up Rolls-Royce SMR Limited that will produce low- carbon nuclear power with small modular reactors (SMRs).

The business has now received £490 million in funding from QIA, Rolls-Royce Group (RR), BNF Resources UK, Exelon Generation plus a grant from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

RR has been a reactor plant designer since the start of the UK nuclear submarine programme in the 1950s. The new company will use standard nuclear energy technology already replicated in 400 reactors worldwide.

The new SMRs will have the capacity to generate 470mw, equivalent to more than 150 onshore wind turbines, occupy a tenth of a conventional nuclear generation site and be able to power nearly one million homes.

“QIA is investing in the energy transition and funding the technologies that enable low-carbon electricity generation,” said CEO Mansoor bin Ebrahim Al-Mahmoud. “We will continue to seek out investments that align with our mandate to deliver long-term value for future generations through responsible sustainable investments.”

RR says the new business is expected to create 40,000 regional UK jobs by 2050 and generate £52 billion in economic benefit, with 90 percent of an SMR power plant built or assembled in factory conditions and around 80 percent delivered by a UK supply chain. The company says much of the venture’s investment is expected to be focused in the north of the country where there is significant existing nuclear expertise.