U.K. announces first nuclear power plant in a generation
The British government has given the go-ahead for the U.K.’s first new nuclear power plant in 20 years. The announcement is controversial — not only because nuclear power still has many critics — but because two Chinese state-owned companies will be involved in building and running the new facility.
There’s been some disquiet expressed by some commentators, but the British government points out that the Chinese have huge expertise in this field. China is currently building about 30 nuclear power stations, more than any other country at the moment.
The British government is also trumpeting the fact that, for the first time, no British taxpayer money will be spent building a nuclear power plant. It will be financed by the French state-owned power company EDF and the Chinese.
The British government says it is not concerned about national security. The facility because it will be on British soil and under British control.
In order to get the French and Chinese to cough up the $25 billion to build it, they’ve been guaranteed a minimum price of energy that’s double current energy prices. The British government says that since the plant won’t be operating for at least a decade, people won’t have to pay these prices immediately. But energy prices are a hot issue in the U.K. at the moment, and this undoubtedly will cause some resentment among British consumers.
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