Antonio Vaya Soler in Paraguay to speak at "Regional Meeting on Small ModularReactor (SMR) Technology Insights & Economics and Financing of Nuclear Projects” organized by the IAEA

Regional Meeting on Small ModularReactor (SMR) Technology Insights & Economics and Financing of Nuclear Projects, IAEA

Asuncion, Paraguay

April 13th, 2026

Last week, Antonio represented LucidCatalyst at the Regional Meeting on Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Technology Insights & Economics and Financing of Nuclear Projects, hosted by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Asunción, Paraguay. The event brought together decision-makers from across Latin America and the Caribbean to explore how SMR technologies can be integrated into national energy strategies.

Antonio emphasized that while SMR cost estimates today are still inherently uncertain given the limited public data and the fact that the technology is not yet deployed at commercial scale, we can still very precisely evaluate them by taking the following steps:

1. Understand what drives cost, risk, and timelines in nuclear projects.

2. Identify why past projects have been unsuccessful and learn from them.

3. Derive the SMR cost and price targets that make them a competitive and valuable

option within a specific grid or application.

Paraguay and the IAEA have since signed a non-binding cooperation agreement on SMR technology, establishing a technical cooperation framework to support Paraguay's long-term energy planning and diversification. The agreement was signed by IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi and ANDE President Félix Sosa.