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French Nuclear Power Plant
Why are we getting a French power plant - can't we build our own?
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British Energy Group plc (which was the largest electricity generator in the UK) was bought by Électricité de France in 2009 and their generating facilities rebranded as 'EDF'.
Électricité de France has both the experience of building nuclear power plants (with 58 reactors in France alone) and, far more importantly, big enough finances to take the massive financial gamble involved in building a new nuclear facility in the UK.
Électricité de France has both the experience of building nuclear power plants (with 58 reactors in France alone) and, far more importantly, big enough finances to take the massive financial gamble involved in building a new nuclear facility in the UK.
We have been sold a pup here.
Many years ago a previous British Government, a joint effort by the Tories and Labour, decided to give the contract to a French firm, instead of a British one. In addition to that, EDF has been given an undertaking that they can sell the electricity generated at a hugely inflated cost, all of which will need to be paid by the British consumer and/or the British Government.
Since the contract was awarded many years, have passed and still no new electricity generating capacity.
237SJ....I admire your optimism, but this can still go *** up, and even if it doesn't, we shall not see a drop of lecky being produced before 2023, which was the original date.
The whole affair has been a complete farce from start to finish.
Many years ago a previous British Government, a joint effort by the Tories and Labour, decided to give the contract to a French firm, instead of a British one. In addition to that, EDF has been given an undertaking that they can sell the electricity generated at a hugely inflated cost, all of which will need to be paid by the British consumer and/or the British Government.
Since the contract was awarded many years, have passed and still no new electricity generating capacity.
237SJ....I admire your optimism, but this can still go *** up, and even if it doesn't, we shall not see a drop of lecky being produced before 2023, which was the original date.
The whole affair has been a complete farce from start to finish.
When I was a kid, (50's) we had a children's encyclopedia which said, "with nuclear energy a home will about 2d a week to heat and run", so how come that never happened ?
Events that happened later proved these plants to be unsafe and in my opinion not worth the risk, especially if foreign companies are building it here.
Surely, we must be better off investing in, Solar, wind and wave energy!
Events that happened later proved these plants to be unsafe and in my opinion not worth the risk, especially if foreign companies are building it here.
Surely, we must be better off investing in, Solar, wind and wave energy!
Chipchopper I remember being told Nuclear power would be so cheap we would not have meters. We would just pay an annual fee that allowed unlimited use of power.
We do have Solar and wind power ( there is a huge 'solar farm' just across the road from my house and a bank of 21 wind turbines just 5 miles away) but they can not produce power 24 hrs a day 365 days a year or in darkness and when the wind is too low or ton strong. Tidal power only works twice a day in each location so you need a 'ring' of tidal stations around the coast to get near 24 hour coverage.
The 'environmental / green lobby' saw off plans to build new nuclear
power stations 20 years ago when they should have been under construction. Accidents like Windscale,3 mile Island and Chernobyl put paid to that.
We do have Solar and wind power ( there is a huge 'solar farm' just across the road from my house and a bank of 21 wind turbines just 5 miles away) but they can not produce power 24 hrs a day 365 days a year or in darkness and when the wind is too low or ton strong. Tidal power only works twice a day in each location so you need a 'ring' of tidal stations around the coast to get near 24 hour coverage.
The 'environmental / green lobby' saw off plans to build new nuclear
power stations 20 years ago when they should have been under construction. Accidents like Windscale,3 mile Island and Chernobyl put paid to that.
Renewables are simply not up to the job. We need nuclear until something better is developed.
What changed was the realisation that there was a cost to clearing up an old reactor, and the costs of additional safety, keeping the residue safe, etc.. Once the extra costs were added in it wasn't quite as cheap as anticipated.
What changed was the realisation that there was a cost to clearing up an old reactor, and the costs of additional safety, keeping the residue safe, etc.. Once the extra costs were added in it wasn't quite as cheap as anticipated.
We dont have the skills anymore and why spend time and money designing something new when surely it has to be most likely we will find an alternative way of generating juice in the near future.
Long term, Nuclear is not the answer. We just need a stop gap especially given the sharp rise in the population.
Long term, Nuclear is not the answer. We just need a stop gap especially given the sharp rise in the population.
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