PRAGUE (AP) — Czech energy company CEZ signed an agreement with Britain’s Rolls-Royce SMR on Tuesday to form a strategic partnership on development and deployment. small modular nuclear reactors.

Under the agreement, CEZ will acquire a 20% stake in Rolls-Royce SMR and pay several billion Czech crowns (hundreds of millions of dollars) in return.

CEZ plans to build the first small modular reactor at the existing Temelin nuclear power plant in the first half of the 2030s.

The partnership is expected to result in the installation of up to 3 GW of energy resources in the Czech Republic. CEZ will also participate in Rolls-Royce SMR’s other projects in Europe and around the world.

The Czech state holds an almost 70% stake in the company.

“This is an important moment for ensuring the Czech Republic’s energy security,” said Petr Fiala, Prime Minister of the Czech Republic.

A power plant using the British company’s small modular reactor should produce 470 MW for 60 years, CEZ said in a statement.

Small modular reactors are a type of nuclear reactor that can produce up to roughly one-third the power of a conventional reactor. Developers say the small reactors will be built faster and at lower cost than large power reactors and will be scaled to fit the needs of a particular location.

The Czech Republic relies on six nuclear reactors to produce more than a third of its electricity and plans to rely on nuclear power and renewable sources after deciding to phase out coal in power generation by 2033 to reduce carbon emissions.

CEZ is expected to sign Signing a contract with South Korea’s KHNP by March Building at least two nuclear reactors in the Czech Republic.