FEARS OVER FUTURE FOR WYLFA NEWYDD
Hitachi may drop £14bn plan, claims report
HITACHI is considering scrapping Wylfa Newydd over fears about increasing construction costs – according to media reports in Japan this week.
Japan’s TV network Asahi reported that the £14bn Anglesey nuclear project could be dropped – while the company’s board was set for a key meeting yesterday.
The report comes as Hitachi is locked in negotiations over the prospect of the UK and Japanese governments taking a stake in Horizon Nuclear Power, which Hitachi owns.
Sources have indicated that the reports coming from the Japanese press may be part of Hitachi’s negotiating strategy.
The sources say Hitachi will want to ensure nuclear energy remains near the top of the Government’s agenda at a time when Brexit is dominating Westminster.
Hitachi’s board was set to discuss the situation this week – but in the UK at the moment it is business as usual with work on the Development Consent Order underway.
A spokesman for Horizon Nuclear Power said: “Since the Secretary of State’s statement to the House in June this year (2018) we’ve been in formal negotiations with the UK Government regarding financing of the Wylfa Newydd project in a way that works both for investors and the UK electricity customer.
“This is one of the aspects of the project development phase that must be concluded before construction of Wylfa Newydd can go ahead, but the discussions are commercially confidential and we won’t be commenting on rumours or speculation.”
The National Infrastructure Planning committee is carrying out an examination of the application for the nuclear station. It is expected to make its recommendation to the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Secretary next spring, with a decision due over the summer.
Funding is potentially the biggest hurdle, with Hitachi wanting additional investors to share the cost and the risk of the multibillion pound project. The plant could start operating by the mid-2020s if it gets funding and planning approval.