European Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra gave the go-ahead for a major step forward towards a new way of generating energy in Europe: the establishment of a test site for a molten salt reactor. On Monday 1 June 2026 the official kick-off took place at the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven, where Thorizon develops, builds and tests key components for the molten salt reactor. DIFFER was also present, as the institute conducts research into the best materials for the machine.
In February 2025, the PROMOSA consortium comprising Thorizon, VDL Groep and Demcon was launched with the support of the Province of North Brabant. Since then, Thorizon has been recognised as a flagship project in the Wennink report and selected to join the European alliance for small modular reactors. These kinds of compact and safe reactors can be built more quickly than traditional nuclear power stations and enables the reuse of nuclear waste.
Materials research at DIFFER
At DIFFER, we develop materials needed for molten salt reactors like those of Thorizon. Together with Thorizon and the Province of North Brabant, DIFFER built DICE; Europe's unique facility to test materials under realistic reactor conditions in an accelerated way. One week of testing in DICE corresponds roughly to the full expected lifetime of a Thorizon reactor core.
Group leader Radiation-Induced DEfect Research (RIDER) Beata Tyburska-Pueschel about this crucial materials research: “The reactor materials are simultaneously exposed to hot molten salt and radiation. Those combined effects strongly influence material lifetime and reactor safety. This helps validate safety models faster and supports the development and licensing of next-generation nuclear systems in Europe.”
DICE is currently used primarily for Thorizon, but when the research for Thorizon is finished, the facility can be used to answer all sorts of molten salt related research questions for other SMR developers. DICE is located at DIFFER, the leading Dutch institute for fundamental research into materials, processes and systems for a global sustainable energy infrastructure. Based in Eindhoven, DIFFER has several unique user facilities for energy and materials research.
Publications Dutch media
- Eindhovens Dagblad: Eindhoven test nieuwe kernreactor die 250.000 huishoudens van stroom kan voorzien
- Volkskrant: In Eindhoven wordt gewerkt aan de heilige graal van Europa’s nucleaire renaissance: de gesmoltenzoutreactor
- Trouw: Nederland pioniert met kerncentrale op basis van gesmolten zout
- BNR Nieuwsradio: Thorizon mikt op commerciële thoriumreactor in Borssele in 2034
- Provincie Noord-Brabant: Eurocommissaris Hoekstra geeft startsein voor innovatieve Brabantse testlocatie voor gesmoltenzoutreactor
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