Great British Energy – Nuclear used its December ‘The Spark’ update to confirm Wylfa on Anglesey as the site for the UK’s first small modular reactors. The programme is billed to add up to 1.5GW of low‑carbon power and anchor a long‑term domestic supply chain, according to GOV.UK.

Scope matters for investors. Government and GBE‑N documents point to an initial build of three Rolls‑Royce SMRs at Wylfa, with potential to scale to as many as eight units over time, supporting about 3,000 jobs at peak construction. Officials also flag first power to the grid in the mid‑2030s and early site activity from 2026, reported by ITV News and the Senedd Research Service.

The funding line is clearer too. The Spending Review earmarks £2.5bn of public money for the SMR programme this Parliament, a commitment set out on GOV.UK and further detailed by the Financial Times as coming from within the wider £8.3bn allocation for Great British Energy and GBE‑N. The Wylfa and Oldbury sites were bought from Hitachi for £160m in March 2024 to secure strategic land.

Indicative capital costs are still being debated. Reporting in the Guardian has cited a working assumption of roughly £10bn for the first three units, while Rolls‑Royce SMR targets a levelised cost of electricity below £70/MWh. That target will only be tested as the fleet moves from first‑of‑a‑kind to repeat builds, a point reinforced by recent SMR cost analyses.

The financing model has not been finalised. The government has previously legislated for the Regulated Asset Base model on large nuclear; trade guidance notes that SMRs could use RAB or a Contracts for Difference‑style approach. Expect clarity at contract signature.

Leadership is being reset to deliver. Simon Bowen has been confirmed as Chair of GBE‑N; former Shell UK executive Simon Roddy was appointed CEO on 8 December and takes up the role on 2 March 2026. Earlier in the autumn, founding CEO Gwen Parry‑Jones stepped down, with CFO Neil Cooper covering on an interim basis, per GOV.UK releases.

On regulation, the Office for Nuclear Regulation says the Rolls‑Royce design is in Step 3 of the Generic Design Assessment. That places licensing on a credible path, but scheduling still depends on design progress and site‑specific consents.

Supply chain plans are starting to show up in contract news. Reuters reported Siemens Energy as the chosen supplier of conventional island equipment, while Rolls‑Royce announced a Dorset‑based safety‑systems partnership with Curtiss‑Wright and a module development facility at the University of Sheffield AMRC-useful early signals for UK content. A recent parliamentary answer set an ambition of more than 70% UK content across the SMR fleet.

Jobs and skills are a running theme. GBE‑N launched its Early Careers programme with Energus and Cogent Skills and became a company partner of the Nuclear Institute’s Young Generation Network-steps designed to pipeline talent ahead of peak construction.

Anglesey’s broader investment picture matters. Welsh Government statements frame Wylfa as part of a wider regional push alongside the island’s Freeport status and an AI Growth Zone, with an initial local investment estimate of £2.5bn tied to the SMR project. That mix could help SMEs find adjacent work beyond the main EPC packages.

There is geopolitics in the background. Reuters coverage noted U.S. frustration that Wylfa went to a British SMR rather than a large U.S. reactor design. For market participants, the takeaway is not the noise but the likely pipeline: Wylfa first, with further UK sites for both SMRs and large reactors under active review.

What to watch next: final contract signature between GBE‑N and Rolls‑Royce; the planning and environmental consent process; ONR progress to later GDA steps; and the first wave of Tier‑1 and Tier‑2 awards. GBE‑N has previously said it aimed to sign contracts in 2025 and begin on‑site activity in 2026, with grid connection targeted for the mid‑2030s.