Modular nuclear power plant for Anglesey approved

Rolls-Royce’s revised reactor building design.

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Three small modular reactors are confirmed for the site, subject to the expected contract, with the potential for up to eight. Another site for a large nuclear reactor is also being sought, thought likely to be one of the places (like Anglesey) that has had a reactor before.
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A first-of-its-kind nuclear power station is to be built on Anglesey, bringing up to 3,000 jobs and billions of pounds of investment, reports BBC News.

The plant at Wylfa, on the Welsh island’s northern coast, will have the UK’s first three small modular reactors (SMR), although the site could potentially hold up to eight.

Work is due to start next year with the aim of generating power by the mid 2030s.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said that Britain was once a world leader in nuclear power but “years of neglect and inertia has meant places like Anglesey have been let down and left behind. Today, that changes.”

The news was also welcomed by First Minister Eluned Morgan, who said she had been “pressing the case at every opportunity for Wylfa’s incredible benefits”.

Using the Welsh name for Anglesey, she described it as “the moment Ynys Môn and the whole of Wales has been waiting for”.

The project, which could power about three million homes, will be built by publicly owned Great British Energy-Nuclear and is backed by a £2.5bn investment from the UK government.
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Ed Milliband, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, called the announcement “exciting” and said Britain is in the race for new reactors.

Simon Bowen, chair of Great British Energy-Nuclear, called the announcement an “historic moment for the UK”.

“These first SMRs at Wylfa will lay the groundwork for a fleet-based approach to nuclear development, strengthening the UK’s energy independence and bringing long-term investment to the local economy.”
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Wylfa beat off competition from another site at Oldbury in Gloucestershire, with the reactors designed by British engineering firm Rolls-Royce, subject to final contracts, which are expected later this year.

Full report here.
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Image: Artist’s impression of reactor building [credit: Rolls-Royce]