Polish energy giant plots fleet of 14 nuclear reactors across Britain

A fleet of 14 nuclear reactors is to be built across Britain under plans drawn up by a Polish-led energy investment giant.

SGE, a Warsaw-based consortium that develops nuclear infrastructure, is plotting a £35bn investment across three sites to generate up to 11pc of the UK’s total electricity supply.

Under plans unveiled on Thursday, SGE’s reactor fleet aims to supply electricity to the UK grid within eight years, providing enough power for eight million homes.

Some of the fleet could be installed at Oldbury on Severn, adjacent to the site of one of the UK’s earliest nuclear reactors in South Gloucestershire.

Other sites have not yet been located.

Led by Michal Solowow, a Polish billionaire, the SGE consortium also includes GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GVH), which would build the BWRX-300 small modular reactors (SMRs) at the heart of the scheme.

Such reactors operate by flowing water over the nuclear fuel, which heats it to the boiling point. This generates high-pressure steam which is used to spin a turbine generator to make electricity.

The reactor’s small size means components can be built off-site in factories and shipped in, cutting construction time and costs.

Such benefits have been largely theoretical because no such plants are yet operational, but SGE says data from its first reactor under construction in Ontario, Canada, are already yielding positive results.

As part of its proposal, SGE has vowed to charge the UK Government less for its power than EDF plans at Hinkley, the giant nuclear power station under construction in Somerset.

EDF, the French-owned energy giant leading the Hinkley project, is expected to charge more than £150 per megawatt hour for the power it generates.

Rafał Kasprów, the chief executive of SGE, said: “Our price will be attractive and below what has been offered for Hinkley.

“We are not disclosing the actual number publicly before we enter dialogue with the UK Government, but it will be lower than EDF is getting at Hinkley.”

He said SGE would not ask the Government for any upfront investment but would instead seek a Contract for Difference subsidy scheme under which it would be guaranteed a minimum price for any electricity generated.

This is similar to the deal negotiated by EDF for Hinkley but, said Mr Kasprów, SGE’s minimum price would be lower.

The company has submitted an application under the UK’s Advanced Nuclear Framework to install its 14 reactors across three sites.

Oldbury could house up to six of them, although no decisions have been made yet.