© Supplied by Sizewell C 
The UK government has confirmed it will go ahead and build Sizewell C nuclear plant in Suffolk after years of delay and ballooning costs.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to confirm a £14.2 billion investment in the power plant ahead of the government’s spending review Wednesday.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said the investment would mark a “golden age” of nuclear to boost the UK’s energy security as well as create 10,000 j0bs.
The government also said it would confirm one of Europe’s first small modular reactor programmes alongside investment in R&D for fusion energy, worth over £2.5bn over five years.
The funding plan also comes with a boost for nuclear armaments.
The government has allocated £6bn over the next spending review period to boost production of UK’s submarine industrial base, including at BAE Systems in Barrow and Rolls-Royce Submarines in Derby.
There will also be plans for multi-decade, multi-billion redevelopment of Faslane, the HM Naval Base Clyde, with an initial £250m of funding over three years.
The government will also invest over £420m in steel maker Sheffield Forgemasters, which was nationalised in 2021 and supplies specialist components to Britain’s Trident fleet of nuclear submarines, securing 700 existing jobs and creating over 900 new construction roles.
The government said its agency Great British Nuclear would announce the outcome of its small modular reactor competition “imminently”.
Cost concerns
The decision to press ahead with Sizewell C comes after years of delay and concerns over costs.
Sizewell C was originally a project led by French state-owned nuclear specialist EDF, but is now majority owned by the British government with EDF a minority shareholder.
The UK introduced a new funding method, the regulated asset base (RAB) model with the UK government expected to shoulder about 40% of the project costs for Sizewell C, alongside French state-owned energy company EDF, while asking private investors to commit the remaining capital.
The Chancellor is set to confirm the funding at the GMB Congress on Tuesday.
The Sizewell C company has signed £330 million in contracts with local companies and aims to deliver 70% of contracts to 3,500 British suppliers – supporting new jobs in construction, welding, and hospitality.
© Supplied by CostainThe equivalent of around six million of today’s homes will be powered with clean homegrown energy from Sizewell C.
Reeves, said:“Today we are once again investing in Britian’s renewal, with the biggest nuclear building programme in a generation. This landmark decision is our Plan for Change in action.
“We are creating thousands of jobs, kickstarting economic growth and putting more money people’s pockets.”
Miliband said: “We will not accept the status quo of failing to invest in the future and energy insecurity for our country.
“We need new nuclear to deliver a golden age of clean energy abundance, because that is the only way to protect family finances, take back control of our energy, and tackle the climate crisis.
“This is the Government’s clean energy mission in action- investing in lower bills and good jobs for energy security.”
Nuclear workforce is set to expand
Recently, the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) reported that, under the right circumstances, the nuclear worrkforce could grow by 29%.
The trade body said that the engineering and construction industry (ECI) workforce in the nuclear sector “could grow to more than 46,000 by 2030”.
Chief executive Andrew Hockey commented: “Contractors, understandably, are reticent to invest in future talent when there is uncertainty around project statuses and timescales.
“The Government’s commitment to the new nuclear build at Sizewell will give greater certainty to the sector for planning.”
© Ben Birchall/PA WireThe ECITB’s latest workforce census found that nuclear had become the biggest employer in the UK’s ECI industry, outstripping oil and gas for the first time.
Hockey added: “Steel erectors, electrical technicians and welders – critical skills for new nuclear build – are among the roles most in demand.
“The ECITB is committed to working in partnership with employers, training providers and the CITB to support the Government’s mission to deliver the Sizewell C project.”
However, 91% of ECI employers in the nuclear sector are experiencing challenges hiring workers, the trade body has revealed.
Despite this, “employers in the sector estimate a 10% increase in headcount by 2027,” Hockey said, “although our latest LFT [labour forecasting tool] forecast puts this figure at 29% by 2030. “
