University of Manchester leads £13 million eco-friendly graphite initiative for innovative modular nuclear reactors
The ENLIGHT initiative, a groundbreaking program aimed at deploying next-generation advanced modular reactors in the UK, has secured significant funding and partnerships.
In 2025, MEAG provided financing of around €300 million for an integrated hybrid wind, solar, and battery storage project in Spain, in collaboration with Enlight as the project developer, BNPP as exclusive financial advisor, and legal advisors DLA Piper and Linklaters. This investment underscores the global interest in the UK's nuclear innovation ambitions.
Closer to home, the ENLIGHT program has received an £8.2m grant from UK Research and Innovation's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), along with additional funding from industry partners and higher education institutions.
The University of Manchester has been awarded a £13m package to lead the program, focusing on redefining the role of graphite in nuclear power. The University, in collaboration with the Universities of Oxford, Plymouth, and Loughborough, will combine expertise in nuclear materials, computational modelling, and porous material analysis.
The program's significance lies in its potential to lay the foundation for a UK-based graphite supply chain and develop sustainable solutions for recycling and reusing irradiated graphite. This could save the UK an estimated £2bn in long-term waste management costs and bolster energy security, as the nation currently relies entirely on imports for its graphite needs.
The ENLIGHT program embodies a truly cyclical and green approach to nuclear solutions. It aims for a cleaner energy transition and helps to demystify some of the traditional concepts that surround the nuclear industry. The program will advance graphite technology through three main workstreams: addressing the supply of high-grade nuclear graphite, managing existing graphite waste, and developing sustainable solutions for recycling and reusing irradiated graphite.
Moreover, ENLIGHT will invest in workforce development to expand the UK's graphite research community, training the next generation of scientists and engineers. This is seen as essential to meeting the government's ambition of delivering 24GW of new nuclear capacity by 2050.
The program's green approach extends to its goal of pioneering sustainable solutions for nuclear energy. It aims to turn waste into a valuable resource, bolstering the UK's energy security for decades to come. Loughborough researchers will use advanced computational modelling to predict graphite performance under high-stress environments, while Plymouth's team will focus on the microscopic structure of repurposed graphite to ensure safety and reliability.
In conclusion, the ENLIGHT program represents a significant step forward in the UK's nuclear innovation and sustainability efforts. Professor Abbie Jones, the Principal Investigator, emphasized that the initiative will re-establish the UK-based graphite supply chain and develop sustainable solutions for recycling and reusing irradiated graphite. This will not only reduce waste and strengthen energy security but also support the UK's net zero ambitions.
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