Singapore Assessing Nuclear Viability – IAA

Singapore is scaling up its nuclear safety capabilities with the launch of a new national institute and S$66 million in fresh funding, a move that opens new opportunities for automation, control systems, and high-integrity monitoring technologies in Southeast Asia’s energy research ecosystem.

Singapore has taken a significant step toward building nuclear resilience and expertise with the launch of the Singapore Nuclear Research and Safety Institute (SNRSI) and an additional S$66 million in government funding to support research in nuclear technologies, reactor safety, and policy development.

Housed at the National University of Singapore (NUS), SNRSI is envisioned as a national authority on nuclear policy and safety, as well as a hub for advanced simulations, accident modelling, and international collaboration. For Southeast Asia’s automation and control systems industry, the institute signals long-term opportunity in precision monitoring, digital twin modelling, and high-integrity automation systems in safety-critical environments.

As nuclear technologies, especially small modular reactors (SMRs), gain traction globally, Singapore is positioning itself to evaluate their viability through rigorous simulations and digital modelling. These initiatives require robust process automation, radiation detection systems, control platforms, and cybersecurity-enabled SCADA solutions.

SNRSI’s focus areas include:

• Reactor accident simulations using digital twins and modelling software

• Underground deployment studies to optimise land use

• Radiation detection, dispersal modelling, and real-time monitoring infrastructure

• Radiobiology and the long-term effects of low-dose radiation

• Cross-border early-warning networks and coastal radioactivity sensing

The institute’s irradiator testing facilities, housed in a radiation-shielded basement, already support the National Environment Agency’s dosimetry laboratory, which oversees safety for over 14,000 radiation-exposed workers islandwide. This application depends on automation for secure and accurate measurement.

While Singapore has not committed to deploying nuclear power, officials, including DPM Heng Swee Keat, have highlighted the need to build capabilities amid regional developments. The Philippines aims to deploy nuclear power by the early 2030s, and Indonesia by 2040. Singapore’s growing expertise and infrastructure could become a reference hub for Southeast Asia, particularly in simulation, risk assessment, and environmental protection protocols.

With plans to double its expert team to 100 by 2030, SNRSI will also ramp up collaboration with international bodies like the International Atomic Energy Agency and French nuclear regulators, ensuring that technology transfer and interoperability remain central.

This initiative offers strategic positioning for:

• Process control & safety vendors supporting nuclear-grade integrity

• AI and simulation software developers offering modelling capabilities for SMRs

• IoT and sensor manufacturers in radiation tracking and environmental monitoring

• Engineering firms and system integrators looking to support advanced R&D labs in the region

As Singapore expands its nuclear policy and technology research, automation will be at the core of its experimental, safety, and monitoring frameworks, creating a pathway for Southeast Asian players to plug into this emerging ecosystem.

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