UK power utility sells out of nuclear power
SSE’s withdrawal from a major nuclear project in its home market casts a shadow over U.K. government plans to build a fleet of new nuclear reactors ……
Furthermore, public opinion has turned against nuclear power following the Fukushima disaster.
SSE Pullout From UK Nuclear Casts A Pall Over Sector
-Scottish & Southern Energy selling stake in NuGen nuclear group to partners
–SSE move casts a shadow over U.K. government plans for new nuclear power in U.K.
–SSE to focus on renewables, gas-fired power stations and carbon capture and storage
–Analysts see the U.K. building less new nuclear than originally planned
WSJ, By Selina Williams 23 Sept 11 LONDON (Dow Jones)--U.K. utility Scottish and Southern Energy PLC (SSE.LN) Friday exited a major new nuclear project in the U.K., announcing it would sell its 25% stake in the NuGeneration Ltd. consortium to partners Iberdrola SA (IBE.MC) and GDF Suez SA (GSZ.FR) for an undisclosed sum.
Although GDF Suez and Iberdrola confirmed their commitment to the project, SSE’s withdrawal from a major nuclear project in its home market casts a shadow over U.K. government plans to build a fleet of new nuclear reactors to meet ambitious climate change targets and energy supply concerns as it shutters older power plants.
The U.K.’s nuclear power program, one of the most advanced in Europe, has already been delayed after the disaster at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear facility prompted a government review of new reactor designs. Friday’s news is the latest to suggest that the U.K. will end up with less than the 16 gigawatts of new nuclear by 2025 previously planned by utilities……
Electricite de France SA (EDF.FR), which is spearheading the atomic revival in the U.K. and has spent millions so far on its project, has already indicated a delay in its plans due to the government review. EDF’s first new reactor was originally slated to be in commercial operation in 2018….
Some analysts have long been sceptical of the U.K’s ambitious nuclear targets, as cash-strapped utilities don’t have the money and may not have the inclination in the current environment to borrow the huge sums required for projects with such large construction risks.
Furthermore, public opinion has turned against nuclear power following the Fukushima disaster. This has already led to a loss of revenues for German utilities E.ON AG (EOAN.XE) and RWE AG (RWE.XE), who have seen their nuclear reactors in Germany shuttered, putting their nuclear investments elsewhere under question, analysts have said.
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