nuclear-news

Sizewell C nuclear costs could hit £100bn including financing, modelling shows

Total for nuclear power station project set to be billions of pounds higher
than official government estimates.

The true cost of the Sizewell C power
station in Suffolk could be tens of billions of pounds higher than official
government estimates once financing costs are factored in, according to
official modelling seen by the Financial Times.

The UK government last week
said the mostly debt-funded project would cost an estimated £38bn in real
2024 prices to build. Under the financial structure of the deal, investors
will be rewarded if the project is built for less than £40bn, and not
obliged to put in further funds if costs rise above £47.7bn — which is
considered unlikely.

But financial modelling — prepared as part of the
wider fundraising process and seen by the Financial Times — gives a range
of roughly £80bn-£100bn in nominal terms over the period of construction
for the two scenarios, once debt interest and payments to shareholders are
factored in. That would imply costs of roughly £65bn-£80bn in real 2024
terms, although the exact costs will depend on inflation rates and spending
rates across the lifetime of the project.

 FT 2nd Aug 2025, https://www.ft.com/content/5f54592e-50ba-4a1e-8219-7a4eb01f74ed

August 4, 2025 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, UK