Britain selects site in Wales for new nuclear power plant

Korea Electric Power

22/05/2024 24:01

LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) - Britain said on Wednesday it
wanted to build a new large-scale nuclear power station in north
Wales, naming a site on the island of Anglesey as its preferred
location and launching talks with international energy companies
about building the plant.   
    As part of efforts to meet climate targets and boost energy
security, Britain is seeking to increase its nuclear power
capacity by 2050 to 24 gigawatts, equivalent to about a quarter
of projected electricity demand, from about 14% currently. 
    The Wylfa coastal site on the island of Anglesey was used
for nuclear power generation between 1971 and 2015. That plant
is currently being decommissioned. 
    The new plant at the site could generate enough power for
six million homes for 60 years, and would be similar in scale to
projects underway at Hinkley and Sizewell in England, the
government said in a statement.
    In 2020 Japan's Hitachi scrapped plans to build a nuclear
plant at Wylfa after failing to find private investors or secure
sufficient government support.
    The government did not name the firms that would be involved
in discussions to develop the new project. 
    Earlier in May, the Financial Times reported South Korea's
Korea Electric Power Corp (KEPCO)  015760.KS  was in talks with
the government to build a plant at Wylfa.  

 (Reporting by William James; Editing by Mark Potter)
 ((william.james@thomsonreuters.com; @wjames_reuters; +44 20
7513 4401;))