Notice

Civil nuclear: UK - Czechia memorandum of understanding

Published 14 July 2025

The Government of the Czech Republic and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (hereinafter referred to collectively as the “Participants” and each “a Participant”):

Noting the historic ties of friendship between the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom and their common interest in civil nuclear cooperation;

Demonstrating the UK’s ambition to become a clean energy superpower, and the Participant’s shared ambition to deploy Small and Medium Modular Reactors (hereinafter referred to as “SMRs”) as part of their commitment to net zero and energy security through new nuclear deployment;

Taking into account the Great British Energy – Nuclear’s selection of Rolls-Royce SMR Ltd. as preferred bidder to build the country’s first SMRs, subject to final government approvals and contract signature, backed by £2.6 billion in this Spending Review period, which could support up to 3,000 skilled jobs and power the equivalent of 3 million homes, and the partnership between the ČEZ Group (CEZ) and Rolls-Royce SMR Ltd. leading to deployment of power plants;

Having taken positive steps to counter Russia’s weaponisation of energy, the Participants intend to continue with these efforts by diversifying their supplies and divesting from Russian civil nuclear supply chains and related goods, including during the next steps taken towards joint ambitions on SMRs, whilst encouraging and assisting partner countries to do the same including to minimise onwards trade;

Emphasising the essential role nuclear energy will play in efforts to reduce carbon emissions to achieve net zero by 2050, and noting that the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference for the first time formally recognised developments in nuclear energy among technologies that should be accelerated in order to address the global need for deep, rapid and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions;

Recalling the fundamental role of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (“NPT”) signed in Washington, London, and Moscow on 1 July 1968 in the development of peaceful uses of nuclear energy;

Noting also the wider collaborative efforts between the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom, including as set out in the 2023 Joint Statement of Cooperation on Civil Nuclear Energy between the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic (MPO) and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero of the United Kingdom (DESNZ), and the 2022 Joint Statement of Intent between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the United Kingdom;

Acknowledging the existing industry cooperation within the framework of European Industrial Alliance on Small Modular Reactors;

Recognising the significant benefits and opportunities for the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom by exploring deeper collaboration on such matters and their interest in pursuing aligned pathways towards deploying SMR technologies, including industrial and regional collaboration across both jurisdictions and Europe more broadly,

Have reached the following understanding:

1. The Participants express their desire to reinforce the partnership between the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom through facilitating a Strategic Nuclear Policy Dialogue, as envisaged by the 2023 Joint Statement of Cooperation on Civil Nuclear Energy, in the areas set out in this Memorandum of Understanding (hereinafter referred to as the “MoU”), actively involving in this process all relevant actors and public interests represented by them, and encouraging industries to cooperate with one another in order to explore options for industrial collaboration and supply chain optimisation including on fuels.

2. Recognising the link between economic cooperation and security partnerships, both Participants welcome the strong trade and investment relationship between the Czech Republic and United Kingdom and intend to work together to accelerate the export opportunities offered by the transition to clean energy, especially those related to new deployment of SMRs around Europe.

3. Both Participants express support for new nuclear energy deployment in their respective countries and recognise the importance of a technology-inclusive approach encompassing traditional large-scale reactors as well as SMRs and advanced nuclear technologies to provide a secure baseload of low carbon energy. This shared vision is expressed in both countries’ strategic documents: the Czech Republic’s State Energy Policy (2015), National Climate and Energy Plan (2024) and SMR Roadmap (2023) and the United Kingdom’s Clean Power 2030 Action Plan (2024) and Great British Energy – Nuclear’s decision to back SMR deployment with £2.6 billion from the UK government. In addition, the Participants take into account the identification of Rolls-Royce SMR Ltd. as a potential supplier of SMR technology in future projects.

4. Through the long-term partnership between their countries, the Participants wish to promote synergy of their respective civil nuclear strategies. This could include information sharing to support the construction of civil nuclear projects in the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom. The Participants could consider collaboration across technology, fuel cycle, decommissioning and radioactive waste management and regulatory cooperation.

5. The Participants intend to work together to encourage business and industrial collaboration to jointly leverage the complementary civil nuclear capabilities available to their countries with a view to accelerate the development of SMR technology, optimise opportunities for supply chain localisation to aid with efficient deployment and maximise mutual industrial benefit to their countries. The Participants also intend to explore opportunities across other areas of the civil nuclear life cycle and recognise the benefits of fleet deployment of SMRs to maximise efficiency, costs and delivery schedules, and are willing to explore this and any wider alignment between their respective programme to optimise their respective programmes, including working with wider partners where there is beneficial alignment between respective deployment approaches or in choice of reactor technology.

6. Both Participants are willing to cooperate and share best practices in areas of nuclear safety, radiation safety, nuclear security, physical protection, nuclear safeguards, radioactive waste management, and fuel cycle throughout the lifetime of the nuclear projects in the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom. Both Participants agree to collaborate to ensure the highest standards of safety and security in new nuclear energy deployment.

7. The Participants intend to support, where appropriate, sharing of information and best practice in multilateral fora, including the International Atomic Energy Agency and the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency.

8. Both Participants are willing to share information on financing opportunities for new nuclear projects and opportunities offered by UK Export Finance and other institutions, to advance prospects of onward trade of common technologies to like-minded partner countries.

9. The Participants are willing to continue to support and encourage the efforts of industry and academia to increase collaboration on nuclear skills and talent development, to ensure the preparation in each country of highly skilled, mobile, and adaptable workforces that will meet the current and future needs of the civil nuclear energy sector.

10. Both Participants recognise the opportunities for nuclear energy in sectors beyond electricity and intend to cooperate and support research and development (R&D) in the area of nuclear energy and co-generation, including the decarbonisation of energy-intensive industries and the production of low-carbon hydrogen and synthetic fuels, using nuclear energy.

11. The Participants share the understanding that this MoU is an expression of their will and does not create any rights or legally binding obligations under domestic or international law, nor does it preclude any new areas of cooperation as identified by the Participants. The Participants are willing to cooperate under this MoU in accordance with each Participant’s legislation, as well as applicable international law and legal frameworks relating to civil nuclear non-proliferation, safeguards, security, safety, liability and relevant export controls, including the obligations arising from the Czech Republic’s membership in the European Union and EURATOM and from the UK-Euratom Nuclear Cooperation Agreement of 30 December 2020.

12. This MoU does not oblige either Participant to transfer financial resources to the other Participant. Each Participant is responsible for its own costs arising in connection with the cooperation activities described in this MoU, unless otherwise determined jointly by the Participants in writing.

13. The Participants express their intention to determine primary points of contact intended to oversee the collaboration under this MoU. The Participants wish to initiate their Strategic Nuclear Policy Dialogue by convening regularly to discuss and develop the cooperation under this MoU. Meetings can be organised in different configurations of seniority to ensure relevant senior-officials or technical experts can participate depending on the subject. The aim of the Strategic Nuclear Policy Dialogue is to identify mutually beneficial areas of cooperation within civil nuclear and to hold focussed discussions related to these areas of cooperation. The meetings may set or modify a programme of action that highlights the opportunities and activities identified at the meetings and designate leads for the planned areas of cooperation to advance these opportunities and activities.

14. Any updates to the cooperation under this MoU may be mutually approved by written communication of the Participants. The Participants share the understanding that such changes apply upon signature by both Participants.

15. The Participants share the understanding that the cooperation under this MoU starts upon its signature and continues for a period of 5 (five) years and that the cooperation renews automatically for successive periods of 5 (five) years, unless one of the Participants notifies the other in writing of its intention to terminate the cooperation no less than 3 (three) months before the end of the current 5 (five) year period.

16. The Participants share the understanding that either Participant may terminate the cooperation under this MoU by informing the other Participant of its intention in writing no less than 3 (three) months prior to the termination.

Signed in London on 14 July 2025 in two original copies in English language.

For the Government of the Czech Republic
Petr Fiala
The Prime Minister of the Czech Republic

For the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Keir Starmer
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland