NES2Go: A Multi-Objective Dispatch and Decision Support Framework for Integrating Small Modular Reactors in Industrial Clusters

This article presents Nuclear Energy Systems to Go (NES2Go), an hourly dispatch and multi-objective ranking model for assessing the integration of small modular reactors (SMRs) in industrial clusters across process heat, electricity and cogeneration operation. A harmonised database of SMR technologies is developed, covering technical, physical and operational characteristics from publicly available sources. The framework complements Renewable Energy Sources to Go (RES2Go), an open platform for matching energy demand and supply in European industry hubs. NES2Go compares economic performance, spatial footprint and annual fissile material requirement, with unmet heat retained as an additional objective in thermal modes. Annual grid export is reported descriptively and does not enter the ranking. Electricity reliability remains an acceptance criterion; unmet electricity is not an objective. Greenhouse gas emissions are reported alongside the ranking rather than entered as an objective. NES2Go simulates hourly SMR operation under varying industrial demand, renewable generation and storage configurations, with process heat demand resolved by temperature level to assess the thermodynamic compatibility of processes and reactors. Cogeneration mode represents the production of electricity and useful heat from the same reactor thermal output. The framework was tested in the port of Antwerp (Belgium) for process heat, electricity and cogeneration. The case study illustrated how temperature compatibility and operating mode constrain the ability of SMRs to supply industrial electricity and process heat. In cogeneration mode, fleets based on 19 designs passed screening and supplied approximately 31–77% of estimated heat demand, findings that apply to the case study for the port of Antwerp. NES2Go can be rolled out to other industrial clusters or individual companies using their demand profiles and assumptions. NES2Go is implemented in Python, providing a transparent and reproducible decision support tool for analysing the role of SMRs in future low emission industrial systems.