COMMENT

THE Budget contained few surprises. Support for “small modular” cheap nuclear reactors was talked about for decades before being backed by Boris Johnson’s premiership.

Whitehall hopes the UK will once again be the home of new nuclear, and the exports and growth that come with it.

But it’s a risk, with none currently deployed and renewables cheaper. And there’s a fight for funding.

The US’s $369billion Inflation Reduction Act and EU’s Net-Zero Industry Act are unleashing net-zero investment bonanzas.

Boosting power generation is needed. Investing in requiring less power in the first place makes even more sense. But six months on from announcing the Energy Efficiency Taskforce, there is little tangible movement.

The Climate Change Committee believes our energy-intensive industries will need carbon capture and storage.

Our depleted North Sea fields offer a tantalising opportunity for this and clearly Jeremy Hunt is on board with the funding.

But a 2015 carbon-capture scheme was cancelled. If the Government is serious, this new investment needs results.

So, is the UK an attractive place for net-zero investment, given incentives elsewhere?

Perhaps more commitment is being kept for a rumoured “Green Day” soon. Investors may well have to wait.