Brussels, 12 March 2026 — The EAGLES Consortium, with partners Ansaldo Nucleare and ENEA (Italy), RATEN (Romania) and SCK CEN (Belgium), welcomes the European Commission’s new Strategy for the Development and Deployment of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), which was officially launched on 10 March 2026 during the Nuclear Energy Summit held in Paris. EAGLES Consortium sees the initiative as a significant step forward for Europe’s clean-energy ambitions and for the industrial deployment of the next-generation nuclear technologies.
“The new European Strategy on Small Modular Reactors represents a decisive step forward in the evolution of Europe’s energy landscape. The Commission clearly recognises that fast implementation, standardisation, and cross-border cooperation are essential to accelerate SMRs deployment - an approach fully consistent with EAGLES' vision and with the objectives set out in the EU Industrial Acceleration Act. Building a strong European industrial ecosystem, capable of ensuring long-term energy safety, sustainability and competitiveness while generating tangible scientific, technological, and economical benefits, is an opportunity Europe cannot afford to miss. As EAGLES, we are ready to contribute to this transformation, leveraging the solid collaboration already in place.”, comments Roberto Adinolfi, Chairman of the EAGLES Consortium.
About EAGLES
EAGLES (European Advanced Generation IV Lead-cooled Energy System) is a European programme focused on the development and the market introduction of a lead-cooled fast Small Modular Reactor (EAGLES-300). The programme targets commercial deployment in 2039, supported by two key demonstrator and prototype facilities: LEANDREA, in Belgium, and ALFRED, in Romania. EAGLES brings together industrial and research organisations to deliver a flexible and commercially sustainable nuclear system.
About EAGLES-300
EAGLES-300 is a 300 MWe lead-cooled fast SMR combining inherent safety, low-pressure operation and passive heat-removal capabilities with the efficiency advantages of a fast neutron spectrum, enabling improved fuel utilisation and compatibility with a closed fuel cycle. The reactor’s high-temperature allows electricity generation as well as hydrogen production and heat applications for the hard-to-abate industry. Entirely designed within the European scientific and industrial ecosystem, EAGLES-300 will contribute to Europe’s goals of energy sovereignty, responsible resource use and reduced high-level waste.
