UK eyes Hitachi’s Welsh site for nuclear plant: report
A UK government body is in talks to buy Welsh land from Hitachi that could house a new nuclear plant after the Japanese giant scrapped construction plans, media reported Monday.
Great British Nuclear has held “preliminary talks” with Hitachi to acquire the land ahead of finding a private partner to help construct a new facility, said the Financial Times (FT) newspaper, citing an unnamed minister.
Hitachi in 2020 axed its planned multi-billion-pound nuclear facility at the Wylfa Newydd site on Anglesey island off the northwest coast of Wales, blaming soaring costs and souring economic climate amid the Covid pandemic.
“Wylfa is one of a number of potential sites that could host civil nuclear projects,” a government spokesman told AFP when questioned about the FT report.
“Whilst no decisions on sites have yet been taken, we are working with Great British Nuclear to support access to potential sites for new nuclear projects,” he added.
The British government is looking to tap into more nuclear power under plans to help meet its target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
“We’ve ended the stop-start approach to nuclear and recently launched a roadmap setting out the biggest expansion of the sector in 70 years, simplifying regulation and shortening the process for building new power stations,” the spokesman said.
This strategy would mean “cleaner, cheaper and more secure energy in the long-term”, he added.
The UK wants to increase the share of nuclear in the country’s energy mix since it does not emit carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Its use as an alternative to fossil fuels is highly controversial, however, with environmental groups warning about safety risks around the disposal of nuclear waste.
UK government 'wants to take control' of land in Wales to revive nuclear power
A new power plant could be built at the old Wylfa site in Anglesey
Reem Ahmed
The UK Government is seeking to acquire and revive a dormant nuclear power station site in Wales, it has been reported. According to a report by the Financial Times, nuclear energy company Great British Nuclear - which is owned by the government - is in early-stage talks with Hitachi, owner of the old Wylfa site in Anglesey.
Located west of Cemaes Bay, Wylfa pumped electricity into millions of homes for 44 years until it was was decommissioned at the end of 2015. These people were forced to leave their homes amidst long-proposed plans for a new power station, which was to be called Wylfa Newydd.
It was hailed by some as crucial to the economic development of Ynys Môn and a a "game-changer" for the north Wales economy, with the ability to bring up thousands of jobs into the area. But in January 2019 Hitachi suspended work on the £13bn project as funding negotiations with the UK Government had "hit an impasse", according to the Japanese corporation. For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter
By September 2020, plans for Wylfa Newydd nuclear power plant had been scrapped as Hitachi had withdrawn from the project. But a year later, there was hope yet as Rolls-Royce announced they were developing small modular reactors (SMR) in November 2021, with sites such as Wylfa and Trawsfynydd in Gwynedd subsequently being shortlisted as SMR sites a year later. Now the government is looking to buy the site from Hitachi and find a private sector developer to build a new plant there, the FT reports.
The land is believed to be worth about £200m, but the government could strike a cheaper deal as the land lies fallow, according to the report. The move is part of the government's wider ambition to expand nuclear power, having last month published a roadmap setting out its "biggest expansion of nuclear power for 70 years".
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