The final investment decision for Sizewell C nuclear power plant is postponed to 2025.
- Negotiations with potential investors are slower than anticipated.
- Support for Sizewell C was shown by new energy secretary Ed Miliband.
- Centrica and other parties are involved in ongoing discussions.
- The government removed Chinese stakeholder CGN from Sizewell C’s ownership.
The final investment decision (Fid) for the Sizewell C nuclear power plant is now expected to be postponed until 2025, as recent reports indicate. The delay is attributed to slower-than-expected negotiations with potential private investors. Financial publication Bloomberg highlighted that discussions with companies like Centrica, Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation, Amber Infrastructure Group, and Schroders Greencoat are still in progress.
Initially, the decision was delayed due to the general election. However, Ed Miliband, the new energy secretary, expressed his support for Sizewell C in a speech to Parliament before the summer recess of 2024, demonstrating governmental backing for the project. This endorsement is crucial as it may influence the pace and outcome of ongoing negotiations.
Centrica’s CEO, Chris O’Shea, noted that while Centrica is prepared to proceed quickly, the timeline depends significantly on government and company readiness. O’Shea emphasized the necessity of realistic expectations given the government’s brief tenure in office and the pending determination of its strategy regarding Sizewell C.
Before the election, then energy secretary Claire Coutinho had affirmed the intention to finalise investment decisions on Sizewell C within the current Parliamentary term. However, this was complicated by the election’s advancement, which was unforeseen by many, including Coutinho.
Apart from the investment delays, significant changes have taken place in the ownership structure of the project. In 2022, the UK government decided to expel the Chinese state-owned China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) from its ownership stake in Sizewell C, citing concerns over national infrastructure security amidst escalating political tensions. Despite this, CGN retains its co-ownership in another UK nuclear project, Hinkley Point C, in partnership with France’s EDF Energy.
The path to finalising Sizewell C’s investment decision continues to encounter complexities, marked by strategic, political, and economic challenges.
