The Hinkley Point B nuclear power station will close by July 2022 at the latest, EDF has announced, triggering renewed calls to invest in replacement reactors.
The Somerset plant started generating in 1976 and was due to close in 2016 but in 2012 EDF secured an extension until March 2023. However, the reactor developed cracks in its graphite core, which has limited its operation.
EDF said this summer that the Hunterston B plant in Scotland, which also has cracks in the core, would close earlier than planned, in January 2022.
Tom Greatrex of the Nuclear Industry Association, said it was “a reminder of the urgency of investing in new nuclear capacity to hit net zero”.
•General Electric, the American conglomerate, is in talks to set up a wind turbine factory on the UK’s northeast coast, creating at least 3,000 jobs. Three locations are competing for the GE Renewables facility, according to the Financial Times.