Assessing advanced nuclear technologies' potential role in Belgium’s industrial decarbonization

A Belgian consortium led by Tractebel has launched NuPowerBE, a research project assessing the potential role of advanced nuclear technologies in the decarbonization of Belgian industry and the wider energy system.

Funded by the Belgian Energy Transition Fund, managed by FPS Economy, the project will run from September 2026 to February 2029. It brings together experts from industry, research centres, universities, legal and financial advisory and stakeholder organisations.

The consortium held its kick-off meeting on 18 September 2026, when partners gathered in Brussels to launch this collaborative effort aimed at evaluating the potential role of advanced nuclear technologies, including Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), in accelerating Belgium’s energy transition.

Bringing together Belgium’s leading expertise to assess nuclear’s role

The consortium comprises twelve partners including Tractebel, VITO, JANSON, KPMG, Ghent University, KU Leuven, Université catholique de Louvain, University of Liège, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, ICEDD, Belgian Nuclear Forum, and Pôle MecaTech. This mix of industrial, research, academic, legal, financial, and stakeholder expertise enables the project to examine the subject from multiple perspectives:

• Tractebel will establish the technology and environmental baseline and coordinate the programme.
• UCLouvain, the von Karman Institute, VITO, the University of Liège and Ghent University will develop cluster-level cases for heat, storage, industrial symbiosis and e-molecules.
• VITO, with ICEDD, KU Leuven and Ghent University, will assess integration within the Belgian energy system.
• KPMG and Pôle MecaTech will evaluate the socio-economic benefits of the project, including supply-chain localisation, employment, trade and public value creation.
• KPMG will develop advanced revenue and financing models designed to capture the broader value created by nuclear energy and support credible pathways to bankability.
• Janson will assess how emerging legal and regulatory frameworks can accommodate advanced nuclear technologies and define pathways for licensing, permitting and State aid.
• VITO and the Belgian Nuclear Forum will explore what is needed to support industrial adoption and secure lasting public and community support.

Supporting informed decision-making

Over 30 months, NuPowerBE will investigate a broad range of topics, including industrial integration opportunities, impacts on the Belgian energy system, socio-economic effects, financing approaches, regulatory frameworks and stakeholder perspectives. Public surveys and stakeholder engagement will form part of the work on societal expectations, concerns regarding advanced nuclear technologies and territorial readiness.
The objective is to provide decision-makers, industry and wider society with robust insights to support informed discussions about Belgium’s future energy mix and industrial decarbonisation pathways.

NuPowerBE is supported by the Belgian Energy Transition Fund, managed by FPS Economy.