Described as “shocking” by Energy and Carbon, the UK’s next generation nuclear power plants are precisely that. The Hinkley Point nuclear power station, due for completion in 2025, will cost US$27 billion (£18 billion); comparatively, a similar-sized gas-powered station would cost 20% of that amount. It will be entirely financed by the end customer who will pay the nuclear power station owners £92.50 ($142) per megawatt-hour (plus inflation) produced for 35 years—twice the wholesale power price in the UK. According to Energy and Carbon, the British are worried about losing “nuclear know-how” and need to replace the Royal Navy’s four Vanguard-class ballistic nuclear missile submarines with new ones.
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