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UK’s Hinkley nuclear project in crisis

Monday, 07 March 2016 1:11 PM [ Last Update: Monday, 07 March 2016 4:13 PM ]

The British media say the country's Hinkley Point nuclear power project has hit crisis after the finance director of EDF, the company behind the scheme, resigned on Sunday evening.

The British media reported on Monday that the Hinkley Point nuclear power project had plunged into crisis after reports emerged that the finance director of EDF, the company behind the scheme, had resigned.

Thomas Piquemal has reportedly stood down from his post after expressing trenchant opposition to those on the EDF board who want to give the green light to the project within weeks.

The resignation of such an important figure on the EDF board will make it much harder for the remaining executives to proceed with Hinkley in the short term, reported the Guardian.

Developed as a partnership between state-controlled EDF and Chinese group CGN, the plan to build two 1,650-megawatt nuclear reactors -- among the biggest in the world -- has faced opposition from unions and within EDF's board.

EDF has been hit by a series of problems that have led many – even in the City of London – to conclude that the new nuclear plant project is on the verge of collapse.

Piquemal is said to have been arguing that pursuing what would be the world’s most expensive power project at this moment could jeopardise the French group, which already has rising debts, the Guardian added.

Union members on the EDF board are also implacably opposed to Hinkley Point, saying it is too expensive and a risk to the energy company’s future.

Senior industry sources quoted by the agencies said earlier in the weekend that EDF was determined to proceed with the scheme within weeks even though the French government – the majority share owner – had serious doubts about EDF’s finances, the Guardian reported.

Meanwhile, the British government said on Monday that it supports EDF plans to build a new nuclear power station in Britain.

"We continue to fully support the project," Prime Minister David Cameron's spokeswoman told reporters, adding that the French government had also expressed its full support.

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