Anglesey nuclear energy plant plan resurrected

Powering forward: An artist’s impression of the proposed nuclear energy station on the Wylfa web site on Anglesey in North Wales

Plans for a nuclear energy plant in North Wales look set to be revived nearly 4 years after the mission was shelved.

Jeremy Hunt mentioned the Government has purchased the Wylfa web site on Anglesey and a second at Oldbury-on-Severn in south Gloucestershire from Hitachi for £160million.

The Japanese agency walked away from constructing the plant at Wylfa in September 2020 having suspended the mission the yr earlier than resulting from rising prices.

But yesterday the Chancellor, who referred to the island by its Welsh-language and constituency title, mentioned: ‘Ynys Mon has a vital role in developing our nuclear ambitions.’

Ministers are additionally urgent forward with plans for small modular reactors (SMRs) with six corporations together with Rolls-Royce bidding to win the contract.

These will complement Somerset’s Hinkley Point C and Suffolk’s Sizewell C nuclear energy stations. 

Virginia Crosbie, MP for Ynys Mon, mentioned: ‘I could not be more thrilled to hear those words come from the Chancellor today.

‘What it means is that we will have a new nuclear plant at Wylfa. Ownership of the land is the key to unlock it and it has happened.

‘What a victory for Ynys Mon. Bright days lie ahead with huge investment and high-quality and high-paid jobs coming.’

Tom Greatrex, chief govt of the Nuclear Industry Association, mentioned: ‘This is a pivotal moment for the future of nuclear in the UK and should mark the beginning of new projects at these sites.’

The all-Party parliamentary group on nuclear vitality final yr described Wylfa as ‘the best site in Europe for large-scale nuclear’.