Government to help fund West Cumbria nuclear project

The nuclear development will be the largest in Europe and could create up to 21,000 jobs

Plans to develop Europe's largest nuclear power project at a site in West Cumbria have progressed following the signing of a financial guarantee between NuGen and the Treasury.

NuGen, supported by its parent companies, Toshiba and GDF SUEZ, is taking forward the project, which will see three Westinghouse AP1000® reactors built on land to the north and west of the Sellafield complex at Moorside, West Cumbria.

The first reactor is expected to be connected to the grid by the end of 2024 - with all three providing 3.4 GW of power by the end of 2026. The development will be the largest new nuclear development in Europe - and the biggest nuclear output from a single UK power station. The Moorside reactors will be expected to power up to six million homes and create up to 21,000 jobs.

The agreement signed by Nugen and the Treasury establishes a process to enable access to the UK Guarantee Scheme. George Osborne, chancellor of the exchequer said: ""The Guarantee Scheme is another way in which we can help companies to make the huge investment that building new nuclear power involves."

NuGen said: “Construction of the new reactors will create thousands of skilled jobs over the next decade, and the project is expected to significantly boost the local, regional and national economies, with a large portion of the development and construction programmes accessible to the UK supply chain.”

NuGen added it expects to make a final investment decision for the Moorside project in 2018.

The UK Guarantee Scheme was introduced in 2012 to accelerate investments in major infrastructure projects, and is to be a key component of any future financing structure for new low-carbon power plants.