UK’s Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill passes in House of Commons

New funding plan for Sizewell C station clears final hurdle in Commons https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/business/funding-plan-sizewell-c-suffolk-clears-commons-8612482

Matthew Earth January 10, 2022

Plans for a new way of funding nuclear power plants – including Sizewell C on the Suffolk coast – have cleared their final hurdle in the House of Commons.

Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng described the passing of the Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill on Monday evening as the “path to leadership and innovation”.

The Bill creates a new framework for funding nuclear power plants, after worries from investors have led to current projects stalling.

It would allow pension funds and other institutional investors to provide cash for power stations through a regulated asset base funding model.

Energy bill payers would contribute towards the cost of new power stations during construction through their bills, with the aim of giving investors greater certainty after projects such as Sizewell C faced delays due to concerns over the financial risks of construction.

However, Labour has said bill payers could be exploited as a “milk cow” under the new scheme if power stations face delays during building work.

MPs voted 458 to 53 in favour of the Bill at third reading, and it will now be considered in the House of Lords.

The government has recently agreed a six-week delay to the final decision A final decision on whether the station will be built is expected later this year.

January 13, 2022 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, politics, UK