nuclear-news

Hitachi seeks talks to slash shareholding in UK nuclear business, seeks direct government funding

Nikkei Asian Review 29th April 2018 , Chairman to ask British premier May to take direct stake in Horizon power unit.
Hitachi will ask the U.K. government to take a direct stake in the company
that is to build and operate a nuclear power plant in Wales which is now
100% owned by the Japanese industrial company.

Hitachi expects the U.K. government will invite private British companies to participate and hopes
to reduce its own stake to less than 50%. Hitachi has recently concluded
that the risk of proceeding with the Anglesey project, at an estimated cost
of more than 3 trillion yen ($27.5 billion), is too great to manage on its
own as a private company.

It plans to withdraw from the project if restructuring negotiations fall through. Such a move would have significant
repercussions for nuclear power policy for both Britain and Japan. In
response to Hitachi’s concerns, the British government earlier this month
proposed that U.K. interests and Japanese public and private interests join
with Hitachi to move Anglesey forward. The three sets of shareholders would
each put 300 billion yen into the project, giving each a one-third stake.
According to sources, the company and the Japanese government see it as too
risky for Japanese interests to retain a majority shareholding and hope
that British interests will acquire a controlling stake.
https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Hitachi-seeks-talks-to-slash-shareholding-in-UK-nuclear-business

May 2, 2018 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | general