Samsung C&T, in collaboration with Fermi Energia AS, has been selected to receive funding support from the South Korean government for a pre-feasibility study related to Estonia’s planned small modular reactor (SMR) power project.
The study will evaluate the technical, financial, legal, and market aspects of deploying advanced SMR technology in Estonia, supporting Fermi Energia’s ongoing national designated spatial planning process.
A key element of the work is a regional market study covering existing and planned dispatchable power generation assets above 50 MW in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. This analysis will examine capacity, technology types, asset lifecycles, financial indicators, ownership structures, policy trends, carbon pricing impacts, and future capacity outlooks. Data from Poland and Finland will be reviewed at an aggregate level. The market study will be conducted in cooperation with Deloitte Latvia SIA.
The pre-feasibility study will also support Estonia’s site selection process through assessments of construction transport and logistics, workforce requirements, accommodation and service solutions, construction organisation, and area-of-influence analysis. It will include a preliminary foundation and layout study for the reactor building and supporting infrastructure, carried out in cooperation with Estonian engineering firm Norte OÜ.
Samsung C&T is scheduled to deliver the final report in April 2026.
“This cooperation with Samsung C&T marks another important milestone in Estonia’s journey toward introducing safe, modern, and reliable nuclear power,” said Kalev Kallemets, CEO of Fermi Energia. “The study will provide practical inputs for planning, supply chain preparation, and investment readiness.”
Earlier this year, Samsung C&T and Fermi Energia signed a teaming agreement to collaborate on the potential deployment of two GE Vernova Hitachi BWRX-300 SMRs in Estonia. The cooperation covers EPC partnership formation, constructability reviews, cost estimation, and financing strategies, positioning Samsung C&T as a potential EPC prime contractor for the project.
Fermi Energia plans to develop a 600 MW nuclear power plant comprising two SMRs, with site selection underway near Kunda in Viru-Nigula County and Aa village in Lüganuse County. Subject to approvals, construction is targeted to begin in 2031, with the first unit expected to enter operation in the second half of 2035.