Four UK nuclear reactors to stay online for longer

• a month ago (2024-12-04)
• David Flin

Europe 1096 Nuclear 669

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EDF and Centrica , operators of four UK nuclear reactors, have announced that these will continue to operate beyond their original shutdown date.

These include a one-year extension for the Hartlepool and Heysham 1 sites that were previously scheduled to shut in 2026. Heysham 2 and Torness will be kept open until 2030 instead of closing in 2028.

The four AGR reactors have a combined capacity of 4.6 GW. EDF said in a separate statement that inspections of their graphite cores in 2024 informed the decision to extend their lifetimes. EDF is also planning a 20-year life extension for Sizewell B, from 2035 to 2055. A final investment decision on this has not yet been made.

Chris O’Shea, CEO of Centrica, said: “In an energy system that is becoming ever more intermittent, baseload power generation that doesn’t depend on the sun shining and the wind blowing is essential to keeping the lights on.”