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We will work to progress a series of projects as soon as possible this decade, including Wylfa site in Anglesey. Subject to technology readiness from industry, Small Modular Reactors will form a key part of the nuclear project pipeline.Ī new government body, Great British Nuclear, will be set up immediately to bring forward new projects, backed by substantial funding, and we will launch the £120 million Future Nuclear Enabling Fund this month. This would represent up to around 25% of our projected electricity demand. The strategy will see a significant acceleration of nuclear, with an ambition of up to 24GW by 2050 to come from this safe, clean, and reliable source of power. What is the government currently doing to support nuclear power? It is also likely to involve major investments in local transport facilities and other infrastructure.
Local engagement events are underway for local people to find out more about a GDF and what it would mean for the community that hosts it.Ī GDF is a multi-billion-pound infrastructure investment and will provide skilled jobs and benefits to the community that hosts it for more than 100 years. It’s currently stored safely in facilities around the UK, but this isn’t a long term solution and we will be moving towards geological disposal for new and existing waste. We need a sustainable solution for the radioactive waste that has already accumulated over many decades. GDF is internationally recognised as the best long-term solution for dealing with radioactive waste. The government is committed to using Geological Disposal Facilities (GDF) to dispose of nuclear waste. A recent report by the UN Economic Commission for Europe was clear that “the world’s climate objectives will not be met if nuclear technologies are excluded” from future decarbonisation.
A reactor core contains many fuel assemblies.īoth the Committee on Climate Change and the International Energy Agency have highlighted the role for new nuclear electricity generating capacity, in partnership with renewables, as a key element of achieving net zero. A bundle of fuel rods, some with hundreds of rods, is called a fuel assembly. These energy-rich pellets are stacked end-to-end in 12-foot metal fuel rods. At the centre of the reactor is the core, which contains uranium fuel split into ceramic pellets.Įach ceramic pellet produces about the same amount of energy as 150 gallons of oil. Fission takes place inside the reactor of a nuclear power plant. In nuclear fission, atoms are split apart to form smaller atoms, releasing energy. The steam is used to spin large turbines that generate electricity. Traditional nuclear power plants use heat produced during nuclear fission to produce steam. If the ONR judged that any nuclear installation was not safe or secure it would not be allowed to operate. Nuclear power has operated in the UK for decades without incident, and all UK nuclear operators are answerable to robust and independent regulators – the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) and the appropriate environmental regulator. In the UK, we have a well-respected regulatory system which reflects international best practice, and an industry which places an extremely high value on safety, achieving world-leading health and safety standards every time it is examined. As confirmed by the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency, nuclear power plants ‘are among the safest and most secure facilities in the world,’ and nuclear power is one of the safest forms of energy generation.įor context, the annual radiation dose to an adult living beside a new nuclear plant is much less than taking one trans-Atlantic flight or eating 100g of Brazil nuts – neither of which have heavy radiation. Large-scale nuclear is a very low-carbon technology, which provides the reliable baseload power we need at scale from a very small land area Hinkley Point C, for example, will power around 6 million homes from a just a quarter of a square mile. New nuclear is not only an important part of our plans to ensure greater energy independence, but to create high-quality jobs and drive economic growth. In light of high global gas prices, we need to ensure Britain’s future energy supply is bolstered by reliable, affordable, low carbon power that is generated in this country.
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