FTSE 100 firm beats two US-owned companies as government pushes nuclear power with Sizewell C investment

• Sizewell C to be built as part of UK’s £14bn nuclear investment

Rolls-Royce has won a competition to be the first company to try to build small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) in the UK, as part of a government effort to push Britain to the frontier of nuclear energy technology.

Great British Energy said on Tuesday that Rolls-Royce SMR was the preferred bidder for the programme, after a drawn-out competition that pitted the FTSE 100 manufacturer against two US-owned companies.