Hitachi British Nuclear Power Plant Purchase

Japanese firm Hitachi has purchased the rights to construct the next generation of British nuclear power stations through a deal announced on 30 October 2012.

The deal will see the industrial electronics manufacturer purchase Horizon Nuclear Power from German firms RWE and E.On. As they pull out of the British nuclear market, so Hitachi will enter the scene and build up to six nuclear power stations, the first of which should be up and running by around 2025.

According to DECC - the Department of Energy and Climate Change - which today announced this takeover, these new power plants will have the capacity to feed electricity to no less than 14 million British homes.

New British Nuclear Plants

The new British nuclear plants will be constructed at two sites - Oldbury in Gloucestershire and Wylfa in Anglesey, with up to three installations at each location.

"This is a decades-long, multi-billion pound vote of confidence in the UK, that will contribute vital new infrastructure to power our economy", Prime Minister David Cameron explained in a statement. "It will support up to 12,000 jobs during construction and thousands more permanent highly skilled roles once the new power plants are operational, as well as stimulating exciting new industrial investments in the UK's nuclear supply chain. I warmly welcome Hitachi as a major new player in the UK energy sector."

Hitachi British Plants Purchase

It's expected that as a result of Hitachi's British plants purchase, British firms Rolls-Royce and Babcock International will also come on board during the construction phases.

‘The Hitachi Horizon programme involves building two to three 1,300 MW plants at each of Horizon's sites at Wylfa, Anglesey, and Oldbury, Gloucestershire, with the first unit becoming operational in the first half of (the) 2020s', said Hitachi.

‘Hitachi will make significant investment in training engineers, construction teams and operating staff, and it will work with local partners to develop training programmes which will create a strong and permanent base of nuclear skills in the UK.'

Image copyright Eric Jones - Courtesy Wikimedia Commons