Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his most recent estimate is of the cost of decommissioning the existing nuclear sites within the remit of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority; when that estimate was made; and when he next plans to review that estimate.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Nuclear Provision is updated by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) as part of its Annual Report. The Nuclear Provision represents the best estimate of the NDA’s long-term mission to decommission its nuclear sites. The latest estimate is £149bn undiscounted (£237bn in present value terms).
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 22 June 2022 to Question 18947, what assessment he has made of the capacity of the UK hydrogen sector to deliver hydrogen to both the (a) UK and (b) overseas markets; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK Government is increasing production to meet its ambition of 10GW domestic hydrogen production by 2030. The UK has strong potential as a future exporter of hydrogen and will continue to ensure its approach realises the greatest opportunities for the UK while supporting the maintenance of sufficient supplies for domestic use.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 22 June 2022 to Question 18947, whether it is Government policy to allocate public funds to support the export of hydrogen.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government funding schemes, the Net Zero Hydrogen Fund and Hydrogen Business Model, are primarily aimed at supporting domestic production. While projects exporting hydrogen could benefit from business model support, the specific volumes exported would not be eligible for support payments. This is to avoid subsidising hydrogen that will not contribute to decarbonisation in the UK.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 22 June 2022 to Question 18947, whether it is his policy to encourage the export of hydrogen.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government’s Energy Security Strategy doubled the UK’s hydrogen production ambition, aiming for up to 10GW by 2030. This will open up greater opportunities for exporting hydrogen, particularly to continental Europe, where the Government sees increasing hydrogen demand alongside established energy trading and interconnection with the UK.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 20 June 2022 to Question 18947 on Hydrogen: Exports, how much funding has been provided to companies to produce and export green hydrogen to date; and what future funding streams have been set aside.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government expects up to 1GW of electrolytic hydrogen capacity to be in operation or construction in the UK by 2025. Support to date has come through innovation programmes, including the £33m Hydrogen Supply competition and its £60m successor. This year, electrolytic projects may apply for capital co-funding, through the £240m Net Zero Hydrogen Fund and revenue support through the first hydrogen business model allocation round. The Government expects the UK industry to be well placed to capitalise on opportunities from the emerging global hydrogen economy as they arise.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much his Department will spend on support for businesses that export hydrogen in the next 12 months.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
BEIS is working with industry to assess strengths and capabilities in UK supply chains to help them benefit from the emerging global hydrogen economy. This will ensure UK businesses are well prepared to capitalise on export opportunities as they arise.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether it is his policy to support the export of hydrogen from the UK to Europe; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
BEIS is working with industry to assess strengths and capabilities in UK supply chains to help them benefit from the emerging global hydrogen economy. This will ensure UK businesses are well prepared to capitalise on export opportunities as they arise.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the predicted flood risk frequency is for the proposed location of the Sizewell C nuclear station when taking into account the impact of climate change on sea levels.
Answered by Paul Scully
Sizewell C is a live planning application. Given the Department’s statutory responsibility for determining individual planning applications for energy projects, I am therefore unable to comment on the specifics of this case.
The Energy National Policy Statements, to which the Secretary of State must have regard when considering applications for new nuclear power stations, make clear that Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects must be resilient to the impacts of climate change, including sea level rise.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 16 May 2022 to Question 312 on British Airways: Redundancy, what mechanisms exist for employees to identify whether HR1 forms have been submitted.
Answered by Paul Scully
Employee representatives are required to be consulted regarding any proposed redundancies and a copy of the notification should be sent to them.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what level of share ownership does China General Nuclear have within NNB Holding Company Limited, for the construction of Sizewell C Power Station.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
China General Nuclear (CGN) is a 20 percent shareholder in the Sizewell C project. Commercial negotiations on the project are ongoing and no decisions, including on a final configuration of investors, have been made. The project is also subject to an ongoing application for development consent, entirely separate from the commercial negotiations.