Latest news with #GreatBritishNuclear
The Guardian
11-06-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
GB Energy's promised £8.3bn of funding raided to pay for small nuclear reactors
Rachel Reeves has effectively cut £2.5bn from the government's national energy company by sharing the £8.3bn it was promised with a separate nuclear power body set up by the Conservatives. The Labour manifesto had pledged the full amount to Great British Energy to invest in clean power projects. However, the chancellor's spending review said the company would share this funding with a separate body tasked with spearheading Britain's nuclear renaissance. The Treasury's spending plans said the 'two allied publicly owned companies with a shared mission' would spend the £8.3bn on 'homegrown clean power' including £2.5bn to help the UK develop a new generation of small modular nuclear reactors. The day before the spending review the government quietly renamed Great British Nuclear, which was set up by Boris Johnson's government in July 2023, as Great British Energy – Nuclear. But despite the name change the two bodies remain separate entities. A nuclear industry source said Great British Nuclear was renamed so Labour could 'make the manifesto commitment add up'. Another nuclear industry source said they expected that the name change would in time lead the nuclear company to be 'folded into' GB Energy entirely, although others argued the two bodies would remain separate. The move has ignited a row between the government's officials and GB Energy over the need to share funds that were promised to the newly established energy company. GB Energy was launched to great fanfare, with its chair, Jürgen Maier, pledging that it would become a major power generator, running its own windfarms, tidal power and carbon capture schemes. A source close to GB Energy said Reeves had in effect 'restricted' the its scope by depriving it of funds that could have gone to renewable energy projects. GB Energy will now be left with about £6bn of capital to invest, of which two-thirds is earmarked for 'financial transactions' – loans, equity investments or guarantees to the private sector – which are likely to be tightly overseen by the Treasury, potentially further curbing its independence. The move follows months of simmering tensions at the heart of government involving the energy secretary, Ed Miliband, the Treasury, and GB Energy, and Maier, a former Siemens UK chief executive. This year, the Financial Times reported that cuts to the planned funding for GB Energy were being considered, before the Treasury was forced into issuing a full-throated commitment to its initial £8.3bn capital injection. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Labour first signalled plans to merge the publicly owned bodies before the 2024 general election. In March, the party set out plans for GB Energy to 'absorb the functions of Great British Nuclear' as one of the company's priorities. In separate strategy documents, Labour said it was exploring how the two bodies could 'best work together, including considering how Great British Nuclear functions can be aligned with Great British Energy'. A Whitehall source said: 'This has always been part of our plans, but I think perhaps not everyone was paying attention.'
Business News Wales
10-06-2025
- Business
- Business News Wales
UK Government Confirms £14.2bn Investment to Deliver Sizewell C
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has said the UK needs new nuclear to 'deliver a golden age of clean energy abundance' as the UK Government announced a £14.2 billion investment to build Sizewell C nuclear plant. Ten thousand jobs will be created , the UK Government said, including 1,500 apprenticeships. It added that the funding would also support thousands more jobs across the UK. The company has already signed £330 million in contracts with local companies and will boost supply chains across the UK with 70% of contracts predicted to go to 3,500 British suppliers, supporting new jobs in construction, welding, and hospitality. The equivalent of around six million homes will be powered with clean homegrown energy from Sizewell C. The announcement comes as the UK Government is set to confirm one of Europe's first Small Modular Reactor programmes. Taken together with Sizewell C, this delivers the biggest nuclear building programme in a generation, it said. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: 'We will not accept the status quo of failing to invest in the future and energy insecurity for our country. 'We need new nuclear to deliver a golden age of clean energy abundance, because that is the only way to protect family finances, take back control of our energy, and tackle the climate crisis. 'This is the Government's clean energy mission in action- investing in lower bills and good jobs for energy security.' The UK opened the world's first commercial nuclear power station in the 1950s, but no new nuclear plant has opened in the UK since 1995, with all of the existing fleet except Sizewell B likely to be phased out by the early 2030s. Great British Nuclear is expected to announce the outcome of its small modular reactor competition imminently, the first step towards the goal of driving down costs and unlocking private finance with a long-term ambition to bring forward one of the first SMR fleets in Europe. Small modular reactors are expected to power millions of homes with clean energy and help fuel power-hungry industries like AI data centres. The UK Government said it was also looking to provide a route for private sector-led advanced nuclear projects to be deployed in the UK, alongside investing £300 million in developing the world's first non-Russian supply of the advanced fuels needed to run them. Companies will be able to work with the UK Government to continue their development with potential investment from the National Wealth Fund. The UK Government is also making a record investment in R&D for fusion energy, investing over £2.5 billion over 5 years. This includes progressing the STEP programme (Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production), the world-leading fusion plant in Nottinghamshire, creating thousands of new jobs and with the potential to unlock limitless clean power.
Daily Mail
10-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Rolls-Royce stock jumps on win of key small nuclear reactor project
By Shares in Rolls-Royce rose on Tuesday after the aerospace giant was selected to provide Britain's first small modular reactors as part of a nuclear power push. Rolls-Royce SMR was the successful bidder in the Great British Nuclear (GBN) competition to build the technology. The Government has pledged £2.5billion over the next four years in efforts to kickstart one of Europe's first small-scale nuclear industries. Typically the size of two football pitches, SMRs have parts that can be built in a factory, making them quicker and cheaper than traditional plants, which take more than a decade to construct. The decision came as the Government said it would invest £14.2billion to build a large scale nuclear plant, Sizewell C, as the UK begins 'the biggest nuclear rollout for a generation' in efforts to speed up the decarbonisation of the power network from the mid-2030s. Rolls-Royce, which is set to build three SMR units, said the decision 'will generate employment, boost the supply chain and generate economic growth, including through the capture of significant export opportunities'. Boss Tufan 'Turbo' Erginbilgic (pictured), who is credited with driving a major improvement in the group's fortunes since joining in 2023, described the decision as a 'very significant milestone' for Rolls-Royce. He added: 'It is a vote of confidence in our unique nuclear capabilities, which will be recognised by governments around the world. It is also evidence that the strategic choices we have made in the transformation of Rolls-Royce are delivering.' Rolls-Royce shares were up 2.2 per cent to 908p in early trading. They have risen by almost 10-fold since Erginbilgic took charge in early 2023, with recent momentum driven by increased global defence spending. Erginbilgic expects the value of Rolls-Royce SMR to 'grow materially' in the years ahead. Rolls says the business is '18 months ahead of its competition' with a 'crucial first mover advantage in a market that is growing and attracting significant international interest'. The International Energy Agency forecasts global electricity generation will double by 2050 and nuclear is expected to be a growing source of supply. Britain's state-owned energy company, Great British Energy - Nuclear, will aim to sign a contract with Rolls-Royce SMR and pick a site later this year, subject to regulatory approval. The SMRs could support 3,000 jobs and power about 3 million homes once they are connected to the grid in the mid-2030s, according to the Government.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ed Miliband is strangling Britain's nuclear power potential
The world is returning to nuclear energy, and of course America has to be the first, the biggest and the best. 'Swift and decisive action is required to jump start America's nuclear energy industrial base,' President Trump wrote last week, to 'ensure our national and economic security'. Trump is turbocharging what Biden tentatively began in his Advance Act by simplifying licencing and speeding up the building process for nuclear infrastructure. The mood shift is significant, because since the Nuclear Regulation Commission was created 50 years ago, it hasn't commissioned a single new plant. Elsewhere, Europeans are also shaking off their long-standing hostility, which is not easy to do when a coalition government may require the support of the Greens. Last month, Belgium reversed a 2003 law phasing out nuclear energy. And here? While the UK was the world's pioneer in civilian nuclear energy, with a working reactor bubbling away in Harwell in 1947, things are anything but 'swift and decisive'. In 2022, as his final act, a demob-happy Boris Johnson announced a massive expansion of nuclear power by 2050. Just in time, you might think, considering a vast deficit in generation capacity loomed. By 2030 we could have just three operational reactors left. A roadmap published in January 2024 committed the UK to building 24GW of new capacity by 2050, both large and small. Great British Nuclear was created and a competition launched to encourage the building of small modular reactors (SMRs). The value of our spent nuclear fuel, an asset which can be usefully exploited in ways unimaginable in the 1950s, was also recognised. Bidders were informed that the six chosen for the initial shortlist would be whittled down to two. One would be a 'spades in the ground' choice with safety and design approval suitable for rapid deployment, to plug the energy gap. The other was understood to be a native design with export potential, which is a way of saying 'Rolls-Royce' without using the words 'Rolls' or 'Royce'. 'We were told that we won't put all our eggs in one basket,' says one industry insider. 'Very few nations have chosen just one'. Bureaucrats delayed the competition using the election as an excuse, and then once again. Astonishingly the only design capable of putting spades in the ground, NuScale, was rejected last year, as I reported at the time. NuScale had been Rolls-Royce's original partner before they divorced, had a head start, and would not be asking the taxpayer for subsidies. But the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (Desnz) explained that it 'did not meet the criteria for the SMR competition, as it had already begun production and did not need support getting to market'. The goalposts had shifted – and haven't stopped moving. Now officials insist there was only ever going to be one SMR competition winner – an account disputed by competition entrants and former ministers. 'It's dishonest and simply not true,' says one bidder. 'There were six bids for four slots in the final round, with everyone assuming it would have to be Rolls-Royce plus one. That was made clear in the bid process. It was always six, to four, to two.' 'Ed [Miliband] needs to stop his fixation with renewables at the expense of all else, and elect SMR technologies for deployment in the UK,' says Andrew Bowie, the shadow energy minister. A Desnz spokesman says: 'Great British Nuclear is driving forward its SMR competition and has received final bids, which it is evaluating ahead of final decisions being taken.' NuScale sources maintain it could have working reactors by 2030, now the earliest is 2035, and that looks optimistic. SMRs were originally envisaged as powering industrial installations, but the hype made nuclear more palatable. The UK's focus on going small has neglected the advantages of going big, with proven designs. 'We absolutely need more large-scale nuclear because those reactors have the design maturity, construction experience, operational record and supply chain readiness to mitigate project risks,' explains Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association. 'Since we need so much more reliable, clean power, we have to build more of the big proven technologies.' More than 70 reactors are currently under construction, according to the World Nuclear Association, almost all are large, gigawatt-scale reactors, and many of those are in China. Prolonging the SMR beauty pageant might be good for civil servants and consultants, but not for industry or consumers who face the prospect of blackouts. As Kathryn Porter, an energy analyst at Watt Logic, explains, the Iberian blackout in April and our very near miss on Jan 8 remind us how costly a generation deficit can be. 'With much of the gas generation fleet expected to retire in the coming years there are real blackout risks towards the end of this decade and into the 2030s depending on the rate of these retirements,' she says. 'The Iberian blackout resulted in seven fatalities in very benign weather conditions – a winter blackout in the UK would be significantly more dangerous.' Ed Miliband sees himself in a heroic role as the saviour of the climate, but he is also a temporary steward of a great nation's scientific and technical heritage – we have engineers and scientists who the world envies. He has a duty to keep this alive. And even more so, to keep our lights on. Andrew Orlowski Tweets at @andreworlowski Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. 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Telegraph
02-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Ed Miliband is strangling Britain's nuclear power potential
The world is returning to nuclear energy, and of course America has to be the first, the biggest and the best. 'Swift and decisive action is required to jump start America's nuclear energy industrial base,' President Trump wrote last week, to 'ensure our national and economic security'. Trump is turbocharging what Biden tentatively began in his Advance Act by simplifying licencing and speeding up the building process for nuclear infrastructure. The mood shift is significant, because since the Nuclear Regulation Commission was created 50 years ago, it hasn't commissioned a single new plant. Elsewhere, Europeans are also shaking off their long-standing hostility, which is not easy to do when a coalition government may require the support of the Greens. Last month, Belgium reversed a 2003 law phasing out nuclear energy. And here? While the UK was the world's pioneer in civilian nuclear energy, with a working reactor bubbling away in Harwell in 1947, things are anything but 'swift and decisive'. In 2022, as his final act, a demob-happy Boris Johnson announced a massive expansion of nuclear power by 2050. Just in time, you might think, considering a vast deficit in generation capacity loomed. By 2030 we could have just three operational reactors left. A roadmap published in January 2024 committed the UK to building 24GW of new capacity by 2050, both large and small. Great British Nuclear was created and a competition launched to encourage the building of small modular reactors (SMRs). The value of our spent nuclear fuel, an asset which can be usefully exploited in ways unimaginable in the 1950s, was also recognised. Bidders were informed that the six chosen for the initial shortlist would be whittled down to two. One would be a 'spades in the ground' choice with safety and design approval suitable for rapid deployment, to plug the energy gap. The other was understood to be a native design with export potential, which is a way of saying 'Rolls-Royce' without using the words 'Rolls' or 'Royce'. 'We were told that we won't put all our eggs in one basket,' says one industry insider. 'Very few nations have chosen just one'. Bureaucrats delayed the competition using the election as an excuse, and then once again. Astonishingly the only design capable of putting spades in the ground, NuScale, was rejected last year, as I reported at the time. NuScale had been Rolls-Royce's original partner before they divorced, had a head start, and would not be asking the taxpayer for subsidies. But the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (Desnz) explained that it 'did not meet the criteria for the SMR competition, as it had already begun production and did not need support getting to market'. The goalposts had shifted – and haven't stopped moving. Now officials insist there was only ever going to be one SMR competition winner – an account disputed by competition entrants and former ministers. 'It's dishonest and simply not true,' says one bidder. 'There were six bids for four slots in the final round, with everyone assuming it would have to be Rolls-Royce plus one. That was made clear in the bid process. It was always six, to four, to two.' 'Ed [Miliband] needs to stop his fixation with renewables at the expense of all else, and elect SMR technologies for deployment in the UK,' says Andrew Bowie, the shadow energy minister. A Desnz spokesman says: 'Great British Nuclear is driving forward its SMR competition and has received final bids, which it is evaluating ahead of final decisions being taken.' NuScale sources maintain it could have working reactors by 2030, now the earliest is 2035, and that looks optimistic. SMRs were originally envisaged as powering industrial installations, but the hype made nuclear more palatable. The UK's focus on going small has neglected the advantages of going big, with proven designs. 'We absolutely need more large-scale nuclear because those reactors have the design maturity, construction experience, operational record and supply chain readiness to mitigate project risks,' explains Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association. 'Since we need so much more reliable, clean power, we have to build more of the big proven technologies.' More than 70 reactors are currently under construction, according to the World Nuclear Association, almost all are large, gigawatt-scale reactors, and many of those are in China. Prolonging the SMR beauty pageant might be good for civil servants and consultants, but not for industry or consumers who face the prospect of blackouts. As Kathryn Porter, an energy analyst at Watt Logic, explains, the Iberian blackout in April and our very near miss on Jan 8 remind us how costly a generation deficit can be. 'With much of the gas generation fleet expected to retire in the coming years there are real blackout risks towards the end of this decade and into the 2030s depending on the rate of these retirements,' she says. 'The Iberian blackout resulted in seven fatalities in very benign weather conditions – a winter blackout in the UK would be significantly more dangerous.' Ed Miliband sees himself in a heroic role as the saviour of the climate, but he is also a temporary steward of a great nation's scientific and technical heritage – we have engineers and scientists who the world envies. He has a duty to keep this alive. And even more so, to keep our lights on.
