Secret British Gas Plan to Go Nuclear

Secret British Gas Plan to Go Nuclear

May 14 - Daily Mail

Centrica, parent company of British Gas, has opened secret talks with French energy giants EDF and Areva about building nuclear power stations in Britain.

Talks are at a preliminary stage, but it is understood senior executives in all three companies have discussed Centrica taking an equity stake in a consortium to build a new generation of nuclear plants.

These are expected to cost about £2 billion each and will take ten years to build.

EDF is France's biggest builder of nuclear power stations and already has 5.5 million British customers. It has also been talking to British Energy, the top UK nuclear power group, about plans to build the first nuclear stations in 30 years.

There is no suggestion that Centrica would build the stations itself, but it wants a key role in an industry that is poised for massive expansion. The Government believes it cannot meet Britain's greenhouse emission targets unless 30 to 40 per cent of the energy produced is nuclear.

British Gas is keen for exposure to nuclear power to maintain a balance in its energy sources. It runs seven gas-powered stations and is considering building a £1 billion "clean and green" coal-fired one.

But Centrica fears that unless the UK diversifies its sources of energy, it could become over-dependent on Russia or the Middle East. Closure of Britain's 17 nuclear power stations over the next 13 years, taking out about 20 per cent of energy production, will add to the urgency of the discussions.

A source at Centrica said: "No firm decisions have been made yet, but we are very keen to be at the centre of what is happening. We have the largest customer base of any company with our 16 million customers and they need to be sure of their supplies."

The Energy White Paper later this month is widely expected to echo the Government's view that a vibrant nuclear industry is vital to maintain a diversity of supply.

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