Plans to build two new nuclear power stations in the UK have passed “a major milestone” after regulators approved reactor designs for the plants.

Nuclear power in UK heads forward

Designs for Hitachi-GE’s Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR), which are planned to be built at Horizon Nuclear Power sites at Wylfa on Anglesey and at Oldbury-on-Severn in Gloucestershire, have won approval from the Office for Nuclear Reaction (ONR) and the Environment Agency.Duncan Hawthorne, Horizon chief executive, said, “This is a huge milestone for Horizon and a major leap forward for us in bringing much-needed new nuclear power to the UK.“Nuclear can deliver high volumes of stable low-carbon energy, which makes it a vital part of the country’s electricity mix and, once up and running, both Wylfa Newydd and our Oldbury site will supply clean, reliable power to the UK for decades to come.“It’s testament to the strength of the combined team, and the proven nature of the technology, that the GDA (generic design assessment) process has been completed and delivered on time.”Mark Foy, ONR’s chief nuclear inspector, commented, “The completion of the generic design assessment of the UK ABWR is a significant step in our regulation of the overall process to construct this type of reactor in the UK, ensuring that the generic design meets the highest standards of safety that we expect in this country.“We are already working on our assessment of Horizon’s site license application and on the development of the site specific safety case to progress, in due course, the construction and operation of these reactors at Wylfa.”

Hitachi-GE pleased to meet UK standards

Tadashi Kume, president of Hitachi-GE, added, “Meeting the famously high standards of the UK regulators and completing generic design assessment within our five-year target further demonstrates the strength of this project, and capability of the team delivering it.“GDA is a thorough and rigorous assessment, and receiving approval on schedule is a credit to the outstanding design of the UK ABWR.“Since 2012, we have been the subject of extensive assessment and scrutiny by the regulators. Throughout this process, their expertise and professionalism has been second to none. We now look forward to supporting Horizon’s ramp-up of site-specific licensing for Wylfa Newydd.”Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, describe approval of the reactor design as as good news for the UK’s new nuclear programme.“It signals the conclusion of a thorough, rigorous and detailed process by the UK’s independent regulators, widely acknowledged as world-class,” he said. “With two-thirds of UK power stations closing between 2010 and 2030, this is an important step in providing secure, reliable and low-carbon nuclear power for the future, to homes, businesses and public services.”

Design established in Japan and USA

The ABWR design is already licensed in Japan and the USA, with four units already having been built in Japan, and two currently under construction on Taiwan. Horizon hopes to build two ABWR units at Wylfa by 2025 and two more at Oldbury. They will represent the first commercial boiling water reactors in the UK.Jo Nettleton, deputy director for radioactive substances at the Environment Agency, said, “We’ve concluded that the generic design of the UK ABWR should be capable of meeting the high standards of environmental protection and waste management that we require in the UK.“We only came to this conclusion after carefully reviewing the submissions provided by GE-Hitachi and their responses to the questions and issues we raised. We’ve also carefully considered all the comments we received from people during our public consultation and we’re grateful for all who took part for taking time to respond.”

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