French Government to Back U.K. Nuclear Project

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--The French government looks set to financially back the developer behind the U.K.'s largest nuclear power project in order to get the $26 billion project underway.

Speaking this week, French Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron attempted to quell recent fears that the Hinkley Point C project in Somerset, England, would not go ahead.

"If you believe in nuclear, you cannot say that you will not participate in the biggest nuclear project in the world," Macron told reporters on a visit to a French nuclear plant at Civaux, which is owned and operated by Hinkley Point C developer Électricité de France S.A. (EPA:EDF) (Paris, France). "Not doing Hinkley Point would be a mistake. I don't rule out any form of support. If there's a need for a recapitalisation, we'll do it. If we must again give up the dividend, we'll do it."

The minister's pledge of support comes a week after EDF wrote to the government looking for additional financial aid before fully committing to the project. In a letter to employees, EDF Chief Executive Officer Jean-Bernard Levy said that it will not go ahead unless it gets more help from the government. The French government owns 85% of EDF, which operates all 58 nuclear reactors in France and is spearheading a new generation of nuclear power projects in the U.K.. For additional information, see March 15, 2016, article - EDF Struggles to Secure Funding for U.K. Nuclear Project.

EDF's commitment to the 3,300-megawatt (MW) project has been called into question following the sudden departure of its chief financial officer, Thomas Piquemal, who had claimed that Hinkley would place too much financial stress on the company. EDF has already delayed making a final investment decision on the project but maintained that it still fully committed.

The project will be capable of supplying 7% of the U.K.'s total electricity demand when completed and is the first in a series of new nuclear build projects planned for the country over the coming decade. The success of Hinkley will determine the future of those other projects.

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