Europe’s nuclear revival is gaining momentum, and one of the clearest signs is coming from an unexpected place: Norway.
The country has advanced a proposal to build small modular reactors (SMRs) into a cross-border environmental review, a move that underscores how aggressively European governments are now pursuing nuclear energy as they try to secure long-term, low-carbon power. For U.S. observers, the development is notable.
Washington is attempting to revive its own SMR ambitions while watching allies and competitors shape the next wave of advanced reactors — projects that could eventually influence American supply chains and international partnerships.
Norway’s environmental agency has formally notified neighboring countries of plans to build SMRs in the Aure and Heim municipalities, triggering a consultation process under the Espoo Convention, which requires countries to assess environmental effects that may extend across borders.
It’s a framework American regulators know well, as U.S. advanced-reactor proposals in places like Wyoming and Idaho face similar scrutiny.
Norway’s neighbors have until January 6 to submit comments, which will be passed to the Ministry of Energy for additional review.
The process follows an environmental assessment launched in September involving national agencies overseeing water resources, energy security, nuclear safety and emergency preparedness.
The project is being led by Norsk Kjernekraft and a public-private venture, Trondheimsleia Kjernekraft, which are proposing reactors in the Tafjord industrial area — a site with potential capacity of roughly 1,500 megawatts, about the size of a large natural-gas plant in the United States.
If developed, the project would put Norway among a growing group of European countries turning to SMRs to ensure steady, carbon-free power for energy-intensive industries, echoing similar moves in the U.K., France, Poland, the Czech Republic and others.
One aspect drawing attention in the United States is Norway’s collaboration with Korea. Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) is conducting a joint feasibility study with the Norwegian developers to determine whether Norway could adopt Korea’s i-SMR design, an export-focused reactor that Seoul hopes will gain global traction.
KHNP commissioned the Export-Import Bank of Korea to manage the study, and the bank issued a tender for the work in October.
The partnership highlights how SMR development is becoming increasingly international — a shift that could influence the types of partners U.S. developers may rely on as they seek stable global supply chains.
Norway’s progress also comes at a time when the U.S. is reassessing its own strategy after the collapse of NuScale’s flagship SMR project last year. The Norwegian model, with its multinational financing structure, shared regulatory oversight and international technology partnerships, offers a glimpse of how future advanced-reactor projects might evolve.
And as Europe accelerates its nuclear ambitions, Korea’s growing presence in SMR development suggests the global market for next-generation reactors may be shaped as much by cross-regional cooperation as by national programs — a dynamic the U.S. will increasingly have to navigate.
