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Terms of the umbrella agreement

• Orlen, Synthos Green Energy and OSGE signed an umbrella agreement on developing BWRX-300 small modular reactors.
• The deal settles how stakes are split and how reactor decisions are made, and executive agreements are expected this year.
• An Orlen-controlled company will build the Wloclawek plant in stages, and Orlen gains direct licensing rights to the BWRX-300.
• The first reactor in Wloclawek is planned to start operating in the mid-2030s.

Orlen, Synthos Green Energy (SGE) and their joint company Orlen Synthos Green Energy (OSGE) have agreed on a framework for further work on small modular reactors (SMR) using BWRX-300 technology (Nowe porozumienie w sprawie małego atomu podpisane. Orlen przejmuje kontrole nad projektem we Włocławku – pb.pl) (Przełom ws. reaktorów jądrowych. Orlen wkracza do gry – dorzeczy.pl). OSGE said the partners confirmed they want to jointly carry out what it calls the most advanced SMR program in the European Union.

In recent months, cooperation between Orlen and SGE, the company controlled by billionaire Michał Sołowow, had been in doubt (Mały atom w Polsce z nowym otwarciem. Orlen i Synthos zawarły porozumienie – energetyka24.com) (Orlen i Synthos porozumieli się ws. małego atomu. Orlen projektu nie opuści – parkiet.com). The new deal covers the two main points of disagreement: how stakes in future projects will be split and how decisions on building reactors will be made. According to Parkiet, the agreement resolves these doubts at the current stage, and executive agreements are due to follow this year.

Orlen leads in Wloclawek

The Wloclawek power plant will be built in stages by BWRX-300 Włocławek sp. z o.o., a special purpose vehicle controlled by Orlen. According to OSGE, each stage will have its own schedule, budget and scope of work. Money for each later phase will be released only if earlier targets have been met (Małe reaktory jądrowe Orlen i Synthos. Kiedy powstanie elektrownia atomowa we Włocławku? Umowa podpisana, znamy szczegóły współpracy - Super Biznes – se.pl). As lead investor at the site, Orlen will be responsible for delivering the project, while SGE will contribute its experience in deploying reactors as a fleet. Orlen will also receive direct licensing rights to the BWRX-300 technology.

The arrangements also provide for special purpose companies to run projects in Wloclawek and Stawy Monowskie, and they cover organizational matters at OSGE. Energetyka24 described the two locations as among the first sites planned for SMR development in Poland.

Timeline and backup option

Under current plans, the first BWRX-300 reactor in Wloclawek is due to start operating in the mid-2030s. Parkiet reported that Orlen will stay in the program and keep an alternative nuclear technology as a fallback option. That detail comes from press reporting and is not part of the official OSGE statement.