News
Preparations for construction of lead-cooled demonstration reactor LEANDREA take shape
Commissioned by the Belgian federal government, SCK CEN is working on an innovative lead-cooled demonstration reactor known as LEANDREA. LEANDREA is intended to demonstrate lead-cooled fast reactor technology and will also serve as an irradiation facility for materials and nuclear fuels for fast reactors. The facility will also be used for research into applications other than electricity generation.
SCK CEN plans to start construction in 2030. To realise this ambition, a robust industrial supply chain is essential, in addition to technological expertise. With that in mind, SCK CEN brought together more than 250 representatives from 175 companies at the Building Belgium’s First Lead-cooled Demonstration Reactor event. The goal? To involve potential suppliers at an early stage, get an idea of their expertise and capabilities, and lay the foundations for long-term partnerships in preparation for the further design and construction phase of LEANDREA.
EAGLES welcomes the European Commission’s vision to accelerate SMR deployment
During the Nuclear Energy Summit in Paris on 10 March 2026, the European Commission officially launched its strategy for the development and deployment of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs). The EAGLES consortium, bringing together Ansaldo Nucleare and ENEA (Italy), RATEN (Romania) and SCK CEN (Belgium), supports this vision and sees it as an important step toward Europe’s future clean energy supply. The strategy reaffirms that collaboration is essential to shaping the next phase of Europe’s energy landscape.
EAGLES and newcleo join forces on LEANDREA
Brussels, 10 February 2026 – During the high-level “Taking the Lead” event on EAGLES-300, Belgian Minister of Energy Mathieu Bihet today announced the cooperation between the European EAGLES consortium -with partners Ansaldo Nucleare, ENEA, RATEN and SCK CEN- and the French company newcleo. Both parties are committed to the development and future commercialization of lead-cooled Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and will now work together on the realisation of LEANDREA. This limited-power reactor is expected to be completed by 2034 at the site of the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK CEN in Belgium.
