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Miliband urged to abandon nuclear megaprojects in favour of mini-nukes

GE-Hitachi Nuclear boss says investors have ‘scars’ from large projects’ cost overruns

An American nuclear power giant has urged Ed Miliband to focus on building a new generation of mini reactors instead of vast megaprojects such as Hinkley Point C.
Andrew Champ, the UK country director for GE-Hitachi Nuclear, said small modular reactors (SMRs) offered “the best route” to expanding Britain’s nuclear capacity as the Energy Secretary draws up plans to overhaul the power grid. 
By comparison, many investors have “scars” from budget overruns and delays with bigger nuclear projects and view them as too risky, he claimed. 
Mr Champ pointed to the large cost of Hinkley Point C in Somerset as an example. The project’s budget has ballooned from £20bn to as much as £46bn when inflation is included.
His comments come as the Government is reconsidering proposals to build a large-scale nuclear power station in Wylfa, a taxpayer-owned site on the Welsh island of Anglesey.
GE-Hitachi, which also builds larger-scale reactors, is among those currently trying to commercialise SMR technology and is vying to secure funding from the UK under the Government’s current mini-nuke development competition. 
SMRs have been hailed as a potential breakthrough for nuclear power because they would be built in chunks by factories and then assembled rapidly on site, potentially meaning they can benefit from economies of scale. 
So far the technology remains unproven on a commercial basis and no such reactors are in operation.
Eventually, providing enough orders are placed, Mr Champ argued the cost per reactor could be reduced to the low, single-digit billions – about the equivalent of a modern gas-fired power station. 
GE-Hitachi hopes to build a fleet of at least 20 SMRs in the UK, Mr Champ told The Telegraph.
He said: “If you look at Hinkley and Sizewell, they’re £20bn-plus projects. 
“That’s quite a sizable cheque for private organisations, construction companies or even banks to stand behind, so they’ve become very difficult on an affordability basis and organisations have learned the lessons there and got the scars. 
“I think SMRs have more chance of success, not only because the technology has been massively simplified to make it cheaper, more reliable and quicker to deploy, but also because of that financeability aspect.
“Once we’ve cracked the first one, I think you will really see these take off and move at pace.”
He also said the UK’s current target to build out 24 gigawatts of nuclear capacity was likely to prove too conservative, partly due to the huge growth in power demand from data centres being used to develop artificial intelligence software. 
Mr Champ said he ultimately supported expanding nuclear capacity through a “mix” of projects, including big schemes such as Hinkley and Sizewell, but added: “I think we should be targeting more than 24 gigawatts. And I think the best route is the SMR route.”
His comments come as GE-Hitachi vies to build Britain’s first SMRs in a competition run by Great British Nuclear (GBN), a government agency. 
GBN is this month expected to whittle a list of five contenders – GE-Hitachi, Rolls-Royce, Westinghouse, Holtec Britain and NuScale – down to four, before choosing two winners late this year or early in 2025.
Wylfa, in Wales, was previously identified as the “preferred site” for a Hinkley-sized nuclear scheme by Conservative ministers but Whitehall sources have said it may now become one of the first SMR sites instead. 
GBN has been re-evaluating the site for Mr Miliband and is also reviewing the Government’s official target to build 24 gigawatts of nuclear capacity by 2050, which was announced under Boris Johnson.
Mr Champ warned Mr Miliband that the UK risked falling behind in the international race to develop SMRs and export them if clarity was not provided on the future nuclear programme soon – raising the risk that investment and skills will go elsewhere.
He said: “I see the UK as being second [internationally] at the moment. We are breaking ground on our site in Ontario at the moment and they’re very proud of that and keen to leverage it. 
“The UK has to keep that pace and maintain the commitment, otherwise other countries will overtake us. We’ve got a number of nations knocking on our door – Poland, Sweden and other countries in Europe – that are taking an interest and are keen to usurp the UK. 
“If we don’t move forward, the skills will go elsewhere, to other countries or to other sectors.
“It’s all well and good winning one competition, for one plant. But we need to see a pipeline of opportunities here. And with the 24 gigawatts, where are the sites coming from?”
On Friday, a spokesman for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said: “We are reversing a legacy of no new nuclear power being delivered, ensuring the long-term security of the nuclear sector.
“Small Modular Reactors, alongside Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C, will play an important role in helping the UK achieve energy security and clean power while securing thousands of good, skilled jobs.”

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