EDF report on UK nuclear benefits

• 11 years ago (2012-06-26)
• David Flin

Europe 1061 Nuclear 640

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A report commissioned by EDF Energy has been published, claiming that the expansion of Britain’s nuclear reactor fleet could boost the UK economy by more than £5 billion, and create 32,000 jobs. However, EDF Energy also said that nuclear energy policy in Britain must provide long-term guarantees to investors before the manufacturing and economic gains can be realised, and that uncertainty over renewable subsidies and new nuclear plants threatens the future of low-carbon power generation in the UK.

The British Government has said that the country will need an additional 18 GW of new non-renewable power generation capacity by 2025 to meet its energy and climate change needs. Britain is trying to encourage nuclear investors by reforming its electricity market to guarantee a minimum price for producers of low-carbon energy, but uncertainty over details of the reform has deterred investors. EDF Energy said that its decision on whether to invest in building four new nuclear plants with a combined output of 6.4 GW at the end of 2012 will depend on the development of nuclear policy between now and then.