UK guarantees China-backed nuclear plant

LONDON

Britain revealed plans Monday for a Chinese-financed nuclear power plant on the southwest coast, the government said.

Chancellor George Osborne, speaking on a trip to China, said the U.K. government would act as guarantor for 2 billion pounds ($3.1 billion) in Chinese funding for the Hinckley Point power station in Somerset.

The new plant - the first in Britain in two decades - is to be built by French energy giant EDF with Chinese backing and could open the way for another nuclear plant in southeast England built with Chinese support.

“The initial deal is set to be worth around 2 billion pounds and will pave the way for a final investment decision by energy company EDF, supported by China General Nuclear Corporation and China National Nuclear Corporation, later this year, and with further amounts potentially available in the longer-term,” the government said in a statement.

Osborne said: “Britain was the home to the very first civil nuclear power stations in the world and I am determined that we now lead the way again."

“Nuclear power is cost competitive with other low carbon technology and is a crucial part of our energy mix, along with new sources of power such as shale gas.”

Energy Secretary Amber Rudd described the government guarantee as “an important step forward for the first new nuclear power station in a generation and the future of home-grown energy supplies."

The new power plant project will power nearly six million homes and create more than 25,000 jobs, according to the government.