Asked by: Lord Marlesford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to make a decision on (1) whether to grant Sizewell C a Development Consent Order, or (2) any commitment of public investment in Sizewell C, before the appointment of a new Prime Minister; and what assessment they have made of the conformity of any such decisions with the Prime Minister’s statement to Cabinet on 6 July that major fiscal decisions should be left for the next Prime Minister.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Secretary of State granted development consent for the Sizewell C Nuclear Power Station on July 20th 2022, after thorough consideration of all relevant information.
Commercial negotiations on the project are strictly separate from consideration of the application for development consent. To date these negotiations have been constructive, but are ongoing and no decisions have been made.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to make the Government Investment Decision for Sizewell C before the summer recess; and what assessment they have made of the impact if that decision were delayed.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is in constructive negotiations with the developer over the proposed Sizewell C project. The Department cannot comment on negotiations given the commercially sensitive nature of discussions. The project is also subject to an ongoing application for development consent, entirely separate from the commercial negotiations.
Asked by: Tom Hunt (Conservative - Ipswich)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Sizewell C on levels of employment in Ipswich.
Answered by Paul Scully
The proposed Sizewell C Nuclear Power station is subject to a live planning application, which is entirely separate from the ongoing commercial negotiations on the project. Given the Department’s statutory responsibility for determining individual planning applications for energy projects, the Government is unable to comment on specific matters related to this application, including the socio-economic impacts, as this could be seen as prejudicing the decision-making process.
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, 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.
Asked by: Tom Hunt (Conservative - Ipswich)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Sizewell C on the UK's energy security.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
New nuclear projects are important for ensuring a low-carbon, low-cost and resilient electricity system, to help us reach our world-leading emission reduction targets and ensure our energy security and prosperity.
The Government has set out its ambition to increase our plans for the deployment of civil nuclear power up to 24GW by 2050. The Government have been in negotiations on the Sizewell C project since January 2021. If approved, Sizewell C would make a substantial contribution to this objective by producing 3.2GW of low carbon electricity, enough to power around 6 million homes or 7 percent of UK electricity.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the (1) lowest, and (2) highest, expected cost of power per kWh from Sizewell C, based on the assumptions in their impact assessment.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Impact Assessment published alongside the Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill sets out the illustrative costs of building and financing a generic new nuclear power plant using a Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model.
Negotiations on the Sizewell C project are ongoing. These will determine its overall cost and value for money. No decisions have yet been made, but discussions to date have been constructive.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, in relation to the building of Sizewell C nuclear power station in Suffolk, (1) what is the basis for the claim that using a Regulated Asset Base (RAB) financing model for its construction “will add at most a few pounds a year to typical household energy bills during the early stages of construction and on average less than £1 per month during the full construction phase of the project” as stated in the BEIS press release of 26 October, (2) what capital sum would be subject to RAB, (3) how many households would pay, and (4) what rate of return investors would receive.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government remains in active and constructive negotiations with EDF over the Sizewell C project. No decisions have yet been taken and the negotiations will be subject to reaching a deal that is value-for-money and achieving all relevant Government approvals.
BEIS has published an Impact Assessment (IA) to support the Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill which illustrates the cost savings of funding a generic nuclear plant through a Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model versus a Contract for Difference. The IA contains estimates of the capital costs and a range of rates of return.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, in relation to the building of Sizewell C nuclear power station in Suffolk, what plans they have, if any, to publish (1) details of the (a) process, and (b) outcomes, of the value for money assessments conducted to date, and (2) a schedule of future assessments.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government remains in active and constructive negotiations with EDF over the Sizewell C project. No decisions have yet been taken and the negotiations will be subject to reaching a value for money deal and relevant Government approvals. Value for money assessments will be carried out in line with guidance set out in the HM Treasury Green Book.
The Government is fully committed to transparency and is including measures in the Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill to support this.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect the Final Investment Decision in relation to the building of Sizewell C nuclear power station to be taken.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In the 2020 Energy White Paper, the Government set out its objective to bring at least one large-scale nuclear project to a final investment decision (FID) by the end of this Parliament, subject to clear value for money and all relevant approvals. The Government announced £1.7 billion funding in the Spending Review to enable a final investment decision this Parliament. The Government remains in active and constructive negotiations with EDF over the Sizewell C project.