Nuclear plant in Hinkley gets planning consent

Ed Davey gives consent to EDF to build plant in Somerset

A new nuclear power plant will be built in the UK after planning permission was granted by energy secretary Ed Davey.

French firm EDF will be allowed to build two new reactors on the site of an existing power station, which is set to close in 2023, at Hinkley Point in Somerset. The new plant will become one of the biggest in the UK, with estimates suggesting the two 1.6-gigawatt reactors will produce 7% of the country’s energy, enough to power over 5m homes. The new plant at Hinkley will likely be the first in a new wave of power stations as the Coalition looks to replace aging coal and nuclear plants across the country.

The new plant will replace the existing one at Hinkley Point

(Image source - This Is Somerset)

Davey said following the announcement, ‘It's vital to get investment in new infrastructure to get the economy moving. [Hinkley] will generate vast amounts of clean energy and enhance our energy security. It will benefit the local economy, through direct employment, the supply chain and the use of local services’.

However, Davey and EDF are still in negotiations over how much subsidy the energy firm will get during the life of the plant. It is thought officials are discussing a contract that would guarantee the French company being paid nearly £100 for each megawatt hour of electricity produced over 30 to 40 years.

Over 1,800 Green Deal assessments in first month

Contracts worth nearly £27m have been awarded through scheme

Over 1,800 assessments on homes and office buildings have been carried out by Green Deal providers since the scheme was launched at the start of the year.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has released figures showing that, between the end of January and the end of February, 1,803 people had an assessment for a Green Deal package for their property carried out. Edward Davey, the energy and climate change secretary, says the scheme, which lets people take out loans to make energy efficiency improvements to their home, has gotten off to ‘an excellent start’.

Early figures do suggest that the Green Deal scheme is going well

(Image source - Which.co,uk)

‘We're seeing clear signs of a promising new market gathering momentum," he said. "In little more than a month, there have been 1,803 Green Deal assessments and that shows genuine interest from consumers. We have created the Green Deal to overhaul our inefficient housing stock and help people keep their homes warm, while also reducing their energy bills. And as the market builds and awareness of the Green Deal increases, I am confident that consumer interest will grow and grow’.

There were concerns that the Green Deal may fail, as experts claimed the scheme wouldn’t actually save people much money. There were also fears that the scheme hadn’t been widely advertised, as a poll held just days before its official launch found that 81% of people didn’t know what it was. Also, whilst these figures are encouraging, they don’t indicate how many of those who had assessments carried out actually went on to have the work carried out.