Nuclear clean-up cost and timescale slashed
The predicted cost and timescale for decommissioning Britain’s nuclear power stations was today dramatically slashed, in a move which may point to a brighter future for atomic energy.
The UK Atomic Energy Authority announced that it had reduced the estimated cost of its clean-up programme by £1.5bn (€2.2bn) and brought forward the expected end-date by up to 35 years.
The prospect of cheaper and quicker decommissioning would make it more attractive to develop future nuclear power stations.
UKAEA chief executive Dipesh Shah said that the reduced costs were largely down to an accelerated programme of decommissioning of its 26 reactors, 14 of which have already been shut down.
“We have taken a hard look at the balance of the reactors and we are advancing them by up to 20 years,” Mr Shah told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
Experience from the decommissioning projects which have already taken place has allowed the UKAEA to develop its own tailor-made techniques, rather than buying in technology from other industries, he said.
But he insisted that safety was not being compromised.
“Concern for the safety of the facilities and our staff remains paramount, as does the environmental performance,” he said.
“Clearly this will instil further confidence in the community that we can clean up the legacy of the past.”
Asked if today’s announcement would make the British government more likely to approve future nuclear power stations, Mr Shah said: “I think the government is right to keep the options open.
“The kind of work the UKAEA is doing in clearing up the legacy of the past will be an essential precondition.”
