Sizewell C greenlit with £11.5bn of new state funding

EDF

THE UK government today promised to invest an extra £11.5bn (US$15.5bn) for two new reactors at Sizewell C in Suffolk, greenlighting construction of the nuclear power station.  

The investment follows the £2.7bn committed by the government in last year’s autumn budget and takes the total investment to £14.2bn over the next four years. Today’s announcement marks the largest-ever public investment in the UK’s nuclear programme, surpassing the previous record of £2bn allocated for the construction of Sizewell B in 1987 – equivalent to approximately £7bn in today’s money.

The government and French state-owned EDF, which has a 15% stake in Sizewell C, will be seeking further private investment over the summer.

Sizewell C will comprise two next-generation fission reactors and will use the same design as the reactors planned for Hinkley Point C in Somerset, the first of which was installed in December. Both plants will each generate 3.2 GW of electricity, enough to power the equivalent of 6m homes over a roughly 60-year lifespan. Sizewell C is expected to take at least a decade to build.

EPR reactors are considered safer and more efficient than the advanced gas-cooled reactors (AGR) they will replace, using water as a coolant instead of CO2. Four out of the UK’s five operational nuclear power generators use AGR reactors, while one uses a pressure water-cooled system. Hinkley Point C will be the first EPR reactor to come online in the UK, expected no earlier than 2029.

The near identical replication of the Hinkley and Sizewell programmes means that Sizewell C will “benefit from all the efficiencies and expertise learned” at Hinkley Point C, which has been criticised for delays and going over budget. UK energy secretary Ed Miliband told the BBC this morning he is “confident” that Sizewell C “can be built cheaper and faster” than Hinkley Point C, majority owned by EDF.

Tom Greatrex, CEO of the Nuclear Industry Association, said: “This new nuclear programme will give the country the jobs, the economic growth and the energy security we need to ensure a secure and reliable power supply for the future.

“This announcement shows the government is serious about new nuclear, and realising the economic benefits that come with it”.

Nuclear investment

Sizewell was first identified as a potential site for a new nuclear power station in 2009 when Miliband was energy secretary in Gordon Brown’s government. Sizewell C has received intermittent funding commitments from governments since, including a £700m investment in 2022.  

The announcement this morning forms a tranche of wider investment packages in the nuclear industry as part of chancellor Rachel Reeves’ spending review tomorrow. Other nuclear investments include £2.5bn in fusion R&D, £6bn for the nuclear defence industry, and £2.5bn for small modular reactor (SMR) development. Miliband has long been an advocate for the nuclear industry, greeting EDF’s decision last December to extend the lifetimes of four UK reactors as a “major win” for energy security.

Reeves said: “Today we are once again investing in Britain’s renewal, with the biggest nuclear building programme in a generation.

“We are creating thousands of jobs, kickstarting economic growth and putting more money in people’s pockets.”

Construction of Sizewell C is expected to create 10,000 jobs, including 1,500 apprenticeships, while the government expects 70% of contracts to be awarded to 3,500 British suppliers. Once operational, the plant will employ around 900 people.

Mike Clancy, general secretary of Prospect trade union, said: “Delivering this funding for Sizewell C is a vital step forward. This project is critical to securing the future of the nuclear industry in the UK.

“New nuclear is essential to achieving net zero, providing a baseload of clean and secure energy, as well as supporting good, unionised jobs.

“Further investment in SMRs and fusion research shows we are finally serious about developing a 21st century nuclear industry.”