nuclear-news

£10bn financial guarantee for Britain’s new nuclear power plants

Nuclear power gets £10bn financial guarantee boost guardian.co.uk,   28 June 2013   Patrick Wintour and Phillip Inman Ministers respond to warnings that UK is on brink of power blackouts with support for French generator EDF to build Hinkley Point nuclear power plant

The government has responded to warnings that Britain is on the brink of power blackouts by announcing £10bn in financial guarantees to thenuclear power industry – a concession aimed at paving the way for the building of the first new reactor in the country for a generation.

The support for French generator EDF, which is in negotiations to build the Hinkley Point nuclear power station, was announced by the Treasury chief secretary, Danny Alexander, as the centrepiece of a £100bn package of infrastructure investment covering 2015-20, including new roads, schools and affordable homes.

Michael Fallon, the energy minister, insisted the substantial guarantees represented a commercial loan, not a subsidy, saying: “This is big-scale financing, not available in the markets.” …

EDF had already prepared the site next to the two existing stations, but would not commit to the project unless the government guaranteed a minimum price for the electricity the new reactor would produce……. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2013/jun/27/nuclear-power-10billion-financial-guarantee

June 28, 2013 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics, UK