South Africa will restart long-delayed nuclear power projects and reopen key research facilities as part of efforts to rebuild domestic expertise and strengthen its position in the global nuclear fuel market, Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said Sunday.
“As a country, we say we are not going to be left behind,” Ramokgopa told reporters at a news conference in Pretoria.
Acknowledging years of setbacks and a significant loss of skilled engineers, the minister said South Africa is reopening nuclear fuel development laboratories, reviving the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) program and working with universities to train a new generation of nuclear scientists.
Driven by the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (NECSA), the government will “ensure that we rebuild the nuclear program and the research agenda in the country,” he added.
Ramokgopa said authorities plan to reactivate key facilities, including a nuclear fuel quantification laboratory and helium test sites, positioning the country as a leading hub for nuclear research and reactor fuel development.
He noted that China is currently the only nation supplying fuel for high-temperature reactors and is poised to dominate the growing global market for Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) as new plants come online.
“With the introduction of the work that we are doing, we’re going to be another player in that space,” he said. “South Africa is going back to its rightful place as a major player on the nuclear fuel side. And we’re confident that over time, we will be a dominant and indispensable player.”
The minister said South Africa lost around 16 years of PBMR development during a prolonged care-and-maintenance phase. Recovering that progress will require partnerships with established international players while NECSA advances work on the country’s planned multi-purpose research reactor.
He said that following a 2021 Cabinet decision, South Africa is moving ahead with the reactor project, which will expand national capabilities in research and medical applications, including cancer treatment.
Pretoria has provided NECSA with 1.2 billion South African rand ($70 million) in capital, Ramokgopa added, noting plans to bring additional partners on board to grow nuclear capacity, including the development of 5.2 gigawatts of domestic generation.
South Africa hosts Africa’s only nuclear power station, the Koeberg plant near Cape Town.