January 17, 2019
Japanese giant unable to agree deal with UK as fears grow for Anglesey atomic plant
Hitachi scraps £16bn nuclear power station in Wales
Hitachi has scrapped plans to build a nuclear power station in Wales, becoming the second firm in two months to abandon a major nuclear project and triggering “a full-blown crisis” for the UK energy’s strategy.
The £16bn Wylfa plant on Anglesey was meant to be the next in a line of new nuclear plants behind Hinkley Point C but the Japanese conglomerate failed to reach a deal with the UK government.
A Hitachi board meeting pulled the plug on mounting costs on Thursday, and the company said it would take a 300bn yen (£2.14bn) hit from axing Wylfa.
The move was a “significant blow” to the UK’s future energy supply plans, the Confederation of British Industry said.
Unions expressed dismay over the cancellation, which will involve around 300 job losses at Hitachi’s UK subsidiary, Horizon Nuclear Power, and around a thousand more in the supply chain. It will also mean thousands of anticipated construction jobs do not materialise.
A second Hitachi plant at Oldbury in Gloucestershire will be shelved too.
Duncan Hawthorne, CEO of Horizon Nuclear Power, said that the company had been unable to reach a deal in talks with London and Tokyo and was therefore suspending Wylfa and Oldbury.
“I am very sorry to say that despite the best efforts of everyone involved we’ve not been able to reach an agreement to the satisfaction of all concerned.”
The collapse of the power stations and the Moorside project that Toshiba scrapped in November means the government has a huge hole to fill in a decade’s time after old nuclear and coal plants have closed.
Together the three new nuclear plants would have supplied 15% of electricity demand.
Questions will be raised over whether ministers should redouble their efforts to make the numbers work for nuclear, or pivot to a new strategy that hugely expands the build-out of renewables.
Business secretary Greg Clark said the government had offered the company a “generous and significant” package of support. That included providing a debt facility for the project, taking a one third stake and a guaranteed price of power of up to £75 per megawatt hour for 35 years. The wholesale price is about £50 per MWh.
While far below the £92.50 awarded to EDF Energy for Hinkley Point C, the Hitachi offer is still much higher than the £57.50 for some windfarms in the early 2020s, a price that is expected to fall even lower in government auctions later this year.
Clark told MPs that renewables had been getting cheaper in the past five years while nuclear had become more expensive because of safety measures. “The challenge of financing new nuclear is one of falling costs and greater abundance of alternative technologies, so that it is being outcompeted,” he said.
However, Clark said he was still committed to new nuclear and would be publishing details of a new approach to financing in the summer.
The nuclear industry insisted it still had a key role to play. “The urgent need for further new nuclear capacity in the UK should not be underestimated, with all but one of the UK’s nuclear power plant due to come offline by 2030,” said Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association.
Hitachi scraps £16bn nuclear power station in Wales
Hinkley’s developer, EDF Energy, said its own projects – which include plans for a site at Sizewell in Suffolk – were making good progress and showed “nuclear has a strong future in the UK.”
Rebecca Long-Bailey, shadow business secretary, said: “Just two months ago, the government’s lack of clarity over funding for new nuclear led Toshiba to withdraw from Moorside. That was a blow to the UK’s energy security, its decarbonisation goals, and the economy of Cumbria.
“But with Hitachi’s decision to withdraw from the Wylfa nuclear power plant, this triple blow has escalated into a full-blown crisis.”
Labour said that Theresa May had questions to answer over whether she had raised the issue during meetings last week with the Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe. The Japanese side has said she did not.
Greenpeace said it believed Clarks’s comments marked a shift in government realising that renewables rather than nuclear were the future.
“The government’s thinking seems to have finally caught up with reality. If the UK’s ageing energy policy is at last opened up to scrutiny, we must ensure that the main question is not how best to make the taxpayer cough up for new nuclear,” said Dr Doug Parr, chief scientist for Greenpeace UK.
RenewableUK, the green energy trade body, said it had a “pipeline of shovel-ready” onshore windfarms that could help fill the gap left by failed nuclear plans. The government has blocked onshore wind power projects from competing for subsidies.
The Liberal Democrats said it was time for the UK to prioritise renewables, batteries and imports over nuclear.
Hitachi still owns the Wylfa site on Anglesey, and said it would continue to talk with the UK government about new nuclear projects.
Latest News
Top news around the world
Academy Awards

‘Oppenheimer’ Reigns at Oscars With Seven Wins, Including Best Picture and Director

Get the latest news about the 2024 Oscars, including nominations, winners, predictions and red carpet fashion at 96th Academy Awards

Around the World

Celebrity News

> Latest News in Media

Watch It
Ruby Franke’s Husband REVEALS Alleged Rules He Had to Follow at Home | E! News
March 28, 2024
_mU-3lE2QwI
#KenanThompson speaks out following the #QuietonSet documentary. (🎥: Tamron Hall Show) #shorts
March 28, 2024
8AGP-Gfw_Ek
King Charles Shares "Great Sadness" at Missing Royal Appearance | E! News
March 28, 2024
lyizFqf1kQY
Martha Reeves Walk of Fame Ceremony
March 27, 2024
QzyezumEPtQ
Eminem, 50 Cent & Snoop Dogg Present Dr. Dre with a Star on the Walk of Fame
March 19, 2024
4bNLs1hxVp8
Opening Remarks for the Variety Summit October 20th, 2023 Jay Penske
March 18, 2024
c6Z707iLq8E
Montell Jordan Dishes On Young MC Wedding, 'This Is How Date Night' Plans | TMZ
March 28, 2024
G3SMExj-qio
Davina Potratz Says TV Not Helping 'Selling Sunset' Relationship Woes | TMZ
March 28, 2024
D4piy4GNm4k
Logan Paul Rips Graham Bensinger Over Documentary, You Promised Apple TV+ | TMZ Live
March 28, 2024
NiSDpZhZklQ
Prince William pinned royal medal to Spice Girl Mel B’s boobs #shorts
March 28, 2024
O1cQ0UW9pco
Jennifer Garner shares ‘hard’ part of raising her and Ben Affleck’s kids
March 28, 2024
3Q7mZaVUdgc
50 Cent's ex Daphne Joy named as an alleged sex worker in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs lawsuit #shorts
March 28, 2024
yhLFI8DG9rM
TV Schedule
Late Night Show
Watch the latest shows of U.S. top comedians

Sports

Latest sport results, news, videos, interviews and comments
Latest Events
28
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
PSG W - Hacken W
28
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
Barcelona W - SK Brann W
27
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
Chelsea W - Ajax W
27
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
Lyon W - SL Benfica W
17
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Atletico Madrid - Barcelona
17
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Manchester United - Liverpool
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Inter Milan - Napoli
17
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
Borussia Dortmund - Eintracht Frankfurt
17
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Chelsea - Leicester City
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Roma - Sassuolo
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Verona - AC Milan
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Juventus - Genoa
16
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
Darmstadt - Bayern Munich
16
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Manchester City - Newcastle United
16
Mar
ENGLAND: Premier League
Fulham - Tottenham Hotspur
16
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Osasuna - Real Madrid
13
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Atletico Madrid - Inter Milan
12
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Barcelona - Napoli
12
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Arsenal - Porto
Find us on Instagram
at @feedimo to stay up to date with the latest.
Featured Video You Might Like
zWJ3MxW_HWA L1eLanNeZKg i1XRgbyUtOo -g9Qziqbif8 0vmRhiLHE2U JFCZUoa6MYE UfN5PCF5EUo 2PV55f3-UAg W3y9zuI_F64 -7qCxIccihU pQ9gcOoH9R8 g5MRDEXRk4k
Copyright © 2020 Feedimo. All Rights Reserved.