[New post] UK govt goes ahead, seeks financial backing for Sizewell nuclear project, despite strong objections on environmental grounds, especially about water use.
Christina Macpherson posted: " It bears noting that EDF was refused planning consent from Suffolk County Council and the PlanningInspectorate in 2020 on the grounds that insufficient information was provided about the project's impacts on local communities and nature. Particular " nuclear-news
It bears noting that EDF was refused planning consent from Suffolk County Council and the Planning Inspectorate in 2020 on the grounds that insufficient information was provided about the project's impacts on local communities and nature.
Particular concerns included procuring water and potential impacts on the local nature reserve.
The UK Government has confirmed approval for the Sizewell C nuclear power plant after Chancellor Jeremy Hunt moved to back proceeding with the development at this month's Autumn Statement. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has stated that the Government will take a £679m stake in the 3.2GW project and will urge China General Nuclear to end its involvement.
It will allocate a multi-million-pound package to cover buy-out costs, commercial arrangements and tax. This is a significant increase from the £100m option fee contribution for Sizewell C which the Government confirmed back in January. It will see the Government becoming a 50% shareholder in the project's development phase. BEIS has stated that EDF, which is developing the power plant, will "provide additional investment to match the Government's stake".
But with the total project cost sitting around £20bn, it is clear that additional backers will need to be found. Sizewell C will be the UK's first project to use a new funding model for nuclear, the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model. This model provides investors with regular returns before a plant begins generating power. It has replaced the previous Contracts for Difference (CfD) approach to nuclear funding due to the passage of the Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill earlier this year, when Kwasi Kwarteng was in the top job at BEIS.
Some local community groups and major environmental groups have argued that BEIS rushed the decision on Sizewell C without accounting for key information on impacts such as water extraction and disrupting wildlife.
On the former point, Sizewell B uses about 800,000 litres of potable water each day. Friends of the Earth moved in August to launch a legal challenge to BEIS over the Sizewell C approval decision. It bears noting that EDF was refused planning consent from Suffolk County Council and the Planning Inspectorate in 2020 on the grounds that insufficient information was provided about the project's impacts on local communities and nature. Particular concerns included procuring water and potential impacts on the local nature reserve.
The Planning Inspectorate stated that "unless the outstanding water supply strategy can be resolved and sufficient information provided to enable the secretary of state to carry out his obligations under the Habitats Regulations, the case for an order granting development consent for the application is not made out".
Friends of the Earth argued that, when it launched its challenge, no more information had been provided or considered about Sizewell C's nature and water footprint.
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