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Released April 19, 2022 | GALWAY, IRELAND
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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--The U.K. has proposed building up to eight new nuclear reactors as part of a sweeping energy strategy to strengthen its energy security in light of Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.
The government believes that nuclear power, which has been dwindling in importance for decades, can supply a quarter of the country's power by 2050. Nuclear accounts for 15% of all U.K. power today but five out of the six aging reactors will be taken offline before the end of the decade. Industrial Info is tracking the only new project in decades--Hinkley Point C--which is under construction by French energy major EDF (Paris, France). The government said it is going to reverse decades of under-investment, with the goal of boosting nuclear power to 24 gigawatts (GW) by 2050, three times more than now and representing up to 25% of total power.
The government also is proposing major investment and faster planning permit changes for renewable energy, especially offshore wind and solar power, while also backing newer technologies such as clean hydrogen and small modular reactors (SMRs).
"Global energy costs have been rising for some time as demand soars and factories roar back into life after COVID-19; Putin's invasion of Ukraine pushed them still higher," said Prime Minister Boris Johnson. "If we're going to get prices down and keep them there for the long term, we need a flow of energy that is affordable, clean and above all secure. We need a power supply that's made in Britain, for Britain--and that's what this plan is all about. We're going to take advantage of Britain's inexhaustible resources of wind and--yes--sunshine. We're going to produce vastly more hydrogen, which is easy to store, ready to go whenever we need it, and is a low carbon super-fuel of the future. We're embracing the safe, clean, affordable new generation of nuclear reactors, taking the U.K. back to pre-eminence in a field where we once led the world."
The U.K. has eight nuclear power sites--Hinkley, Sizewell, Heysham, Hartlepool, Bradwell, Wylfa, Oldbury and Moorside--and envisages building new reactors on all of them. It wants to approve one project per year by 2030 with the goal of having them commissioned in the coming decades. A new government body, Great British Nuclear, is being set up to accelerate the planning process and fast-track nuclear projects. First off, the government wants to approve a proposed project at the Wylfa site in Anglesey and is evaluating advanced plans to approve two new reactors at Sizewell in Suffolk. Industrial Info is tracking the proposed projects, including plans to extend the lives of the existing Sizewell reactors. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can click here for the Sizewell reports.
Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the U.K.'s Nuclear Industry Association, said: "The government's leadership and determination to ensure the accelerated delivery of significant new nuclear capacity is very welcome. That capacity is necessary to ensure we have a secure, reliable and low carbon energy mix for the long term, while being less exposed to the price volatility of gas. Nuclear--alongside other low carbon sources-- will also provide long term, skilled jobs in all parts of the U.K.."
The government also has set a higher target for offshore wind, raising the bar from 40 GW to 50 GW in place by 2030, including 5 GW of floating wind--enough to power all U.K. homes. The government stated: "We will be the Saudi Arabia of wind power, with the ambition that by 2030 over half our renewable generation capacity will be wind, with the added benefit of high skilled jobs. But the development and deployment of offshore wind farms still takes up to 13 years. On planning, these projects tend to have public support...on cost, the unit cost of offshore wind power has fallen by around two-thirds...on jobs, we expect the sector will grow to support around 90,000 jobs by 2030. We will cut the process time by over half by reducing consent time from up to four years down to one year."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the world's leading provider of market intelligence across the upstream, midstream and downstream energy markets and all other major industrial markets. IIR's Global Market Intelligence Platform (GMI) supports our end-users across their core businesses, and helps them connect trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated project opportunities. Follow IIR on: LinkedIn.
The government believes that nuclear power, which has been dwindling in importance for decades, can supply a quarter of the country's power by 2050. Nuclear accounts for 15% of all U.K. power today but five out of the six aging reactors will be taken offline before the end of the decade. Industrial Info is tracking the only new project in decades--Hinkley Point C--which is under construction by French energy major EDF (Paris, France). The government said it is going to reverse decades of under-investment, with the goal of boosting nuclear power to 24 gigawatts (GW) by 2050, three times more than now and representing up to 25% of total power.
The government also is proposing major investment and faster planning permit changes for renewable energy, especially offshore wind and solar power, while also backing newer technologies such as clean hydrogen and small modular reactors (SMRs).
"Global energy costs have been rising for some time as demand soars and factories roar back into life after COVID-19; Putin's invasion of Ukraine pushed them still higher," said Prime Minister Boris Johnson. "If we're going to get prices down and keep them there for the long term, we need a flow of energy that is affordable, clean and above all secure. We need a power supply that's made in Britain, for Britain--and that's what this plan is all about. We're going to take advantage of Britain's inexhaustible resources of wind and--yes--sunshine. We're going to produce vastly more hydrogen, which is easy to store, ready to go whenever we need it, and is a low carbon super-fuel of the future. We're embracing the safe, clean, affordable new generation of nuclear reactors, taking the U.K. back to pre-eminence in a field where we once led the world."
The U.K. has eight nuclear power sites--Hinkley, Sizewell, Heysham, Hartlepool, Bradwell, Wylfa, Oldbury and Moorside--and envisages building new reactors on all of them. It wants to approve one project per year by 2030 with the goal of having them commissioned in the coming decades. A new government body, Great British Nuclear, is being set up to accelerate the planning process and fast-track nuclear projects. First off, the government wants to approve a proposed project at the Wylfa site in Anglesey and is evaluating advanced plans to approve two new reactors at Sizewell in Suffolk. Industrial Info is tracking the proposed projects, including plans to extend the lives of the existing Sizewell reactors. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can click here for the Sizewell reports.
Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the U.K.'s Nuclear Industry Association, said: "The government's leadership and determination to ensure the accelerated delivery of significant new nuclear capacity is very welcome. That capacity is necessary to ensure we have a secure, reliable and low carbon energy mix for the long term, while being less exposed to the price volatility of gas. Nuclear--alongside other low carbon sources-- will also provide long term, skilled jobs in all parts of the U.K.."
The government also has set a higher target for offshore wind, raising the bar from 40 GW to 50 GW in place by 2030, including 5 GW of floating wind--enough to power all U.K. homes. The government stated: "We will be the Saudi Arabia of wind power, with the ambition that by 2030 over half our renewable generation capacity will be wind, with the added benefit of high skilled jobs. But the development and deployment of offshore wind farms still takes up to 13 years. On planning, these projects tend to have public support...on cost, the unit cost of offshore wind power has fallen by around two-thirds...on jobs, we expect the sector will grow to support around 90,000 jobs by 2030. We will cut the process time by over half by reducing consent time from up to four years down to one year."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the world's leading provider of market intelligence across the upstream, midstream and downstream energy markets and all other major industrial markets. IIR's Global Market Intelligence Platform (GMI) supports our end-users across their core businesses, and helps them connect trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated project opportunities. Follow IIR on: LinkedIn.
