Brexit the end of Hinkley Point, says expert
The planned new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point was in doubt on Tuesday, with one expert saying majority French-owned company EDF is highly unlikely to invest given the post-Brexit economic climate.
EDF
€12.00
16:30 19/03/24
Dr Paul Dorfman, Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the Energy Institute, University College London, told the Daily Mail that Brexit was the final nail in the coffin for the long-delayed and much-maligned project.
The project initially would have seen Hinkley Point producing 7% of the UK’s electricity needs by 2017, but years of lengthy delays - including questions over EDF’s finances in its native France - have pushed that back to 2025 at the earliest.
“It gives everybody the chance to slip out without losing any more face,” Dorfman said.
“How is France going to invest in the UK if the UK is no longer part of the union?
“Not only that but the French nuclear industry has huge financial problems and unions are screaming that they don't want it,” he added.
Dorfman also said that the shuttering of plans at Hinkley Point would have a knock-on effect, with plans for Sizewell’s third reactor being torn up too.
Dr Dorfman is currently a member of the European Nuclear Energy Forum, and has previously been a nuclear issues advisor to the UK government.