CGN bids for stake in UK’s Moorside nuclear project

CGN is bidding for a stake in the UK’s planned Moorside nuclear plant following the financial troubles that have struck its developer Toshiba.

“We are willing to utilise our experience in nuclear design, construction and operation for more than 30 years to support the development of Britain’s nuclear industry,” CGN, China’s largest nuclear power operator, said in a statement to Reuters.

The company has not revealed any further details about its bid for a stake in NuGeneration (NuGen), which plans to build three reactors at the Moorside site in Cumbria totalling 3.8 GW of generating capacity.

The future of the NuGen was thrown into doubt earlier this year after Toshiba, which has a 60% share in the partnership, was forced to buy the remaining 40% stake from Engie after Toshiba’s subsidiary Westinghouse filed for bankruptcy in the US. The collapse of Westinghouse led Toshiba to warn of “substantial doubt” about its ability to continue as a going concern. The Japanese conglomerate is looking at options to shore up its balance sheet, including selling off its prized US$20bn semiconductor business.

If it succeeds in buying a stake, CGN will be a partner in four of the UK’s proposed reactors. It already has stakes in the Hinkley Point C, Sizewell and Bradwell projects.