The U.K. government on Sept. 15 finally approved the $24-billion Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant, which will be financed and built by state-controlled French and Chinese companies. The deal opens the door to China to own and build the Bradwell B plant using its own reactor design.
Paris-based EDF Energy controls two-thirds of the 3,300-MW Hinckley PWR project in Somerset, with Beijing-based China General Nuclear Corp. holding the financial balance. The companies will finance the project, supported by various U.K. government guarantees and an agreed-upon energy price of $122 per MWh at 2012 values for the first 35 years of operations.