Earlier this month, the South West Nuclear Hub’s Research and Strategy Manager, Tom Robinson, was invited to the House of Commons to present the opportunities for nuclear in our region to MPs. Speaking at the Western Gateway All Party Parliamentary Group, Tom outlined how the South West is leading the way in the nuclear sector nationally and, with upcoming opportunities, could become an international leader too.
After submitting to the Western Gateway’s call for ideas, I was invited to the Houses of Parliament to present the opportunities for new nuclear in our region to the Western Gateway All Party Parliamentary Group. The Western Gateway covers the West of England and South Wales, and runs from Swindon in the east through to Pembrokeshire in the west. The All Party Parliamentary Group includes all of the MPs and Lords in the region, and there were representatives from Labour, Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and Greens at the meeting.
This was without doubt a career highlight. Not many people have the honour of presenting at the Houses of Parliament and this was a strong recognition of the hard work we have been doing at the South West Nuclear Hub to support nuclear in the South West. One of our key objectives is to advocate for the nuclear sector in our region, and there is no greater advocacy activity than presenting to MPs and Lords.
In truth, it is an easy sell. We are home to the UK’s nuclear new build supply chain, developed from a standing start by Hinkley Point C- the first nuclear reactor project in a generation. Over 1,500 local businesses have helped deliver the reactor; over 14,300 people were trained through centres of excellence and over £5bn has been spent in the local economy. The recent Final Investment Decision for Sizewell C has been built on the successes of Hinkley Point C and will be built by the supply chain it has developed. Although Sizewell C is on the other side of the country, it will be delivered by the skills and capabilities of our region.
Further new build opportunities were announced with Rolls-Royce SMR as the preferred supplier of the Great British Energy – Nuclear Small Modular Reactor (SMR) competition. Rolls-Royce SMR have been part of the Severn Edge working group, alongside the South West Nuclear Hub, to help develop the strategy for the Oldbury and Berkeley sites. The strategy led to Great British Energy – Nuclear purchasing the Oldbury site and Chiltern Vital Berkeley purchasing the Berkeley Science Park - both sites have been earmarked for SMRs. The nuclear supply chain in the region, particularly the modular construction facilities of Framatome and Liang O’Rourke at the Avonmouth docks, means we have the capability to deliver SMRs. The work of the Severn Edge working group has laid the groundwork for delivery, with support obtained from the local community, local and regional authorities like Western Gateway and the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, and MPs. This fertile ground means we are ideally placed to deliver the first SMRs in the UK.
The first-of-a-kind SMR will be hardest to build, so it should be built where we have the skills, the capabilities and the buy-in, and that is at Oldbury.
An SMR factory in the region could build on our strengths in both nuclear modular manufacturing and advanced manufacturing, for example, the regeneration of Port Talbot steelworks, novel method developments at NCC, and the potential leverage of offshore wind manufacturing for the Celtic Array. An SMR factory would provide lasting benefit to the region beyond the first SMRs, and place our region in an internationally leading position. Rolls-Royce SMR has contracts with Czechia, agreements in the Netherlands and Poland, and potential opportunities in Hungary and Sweden, so these countries would be looking to our region to learn how to deliver SMRs.
The spending review also announced Advance Modular Reactors (AMRs) would be assessed within a new framework and that the government is “providing a pathway for privately-led advanced nuclear technologies”. To move along this pathway, AMRs need the space and the opportunity to physically test their designs. Our region could again play a leading role in this and be an enabler for new reactor technology. Chiltern Vital Group aim to develop the Berkeley Science Park into a clean energy supercluster and attract companies developing new nuclear technologies. An Innovation Centre at the Berkeley site would enable the development of new AMRs and the supporting research and skills development to underpin their design and delivery. I presented the idea of an innovation centre at the All Party Parliamentary Group and also to the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority and have received a strongly supportive response. Further benefit to the region could be realised by giving special status to the Berkeley Science Park, for example, as an Innovation Zone with reduced business rates. This will build on our region’s international standing to help bring inward investment from international partners.
The final opportunity for the region is in developing alternative nuclear sites. Last Energy is leading on this activity in the UK from our region with its proposal for microreactors at Bridgend. They have entered the Office for Nuclear Regulation’s nuclear site licensing process, the first time this process has been run since 1978. One of the major sticking blocks is that the Government has not resolved its consultation on nuclear site licensing, termed EN-7. Without confirmation on the site licensing, it is unclear how Last Energy can progress with its application. I urged the All Party Parliamentary Group to pressure the Government to complete the EN-7 consultation, so that Last Energy can forge the pathway for privately-led AMRs within our region.
Overall, this was an excellent experience and a crucial part of my role within the South West Nuclear Hub. The Hub and its members are integral parts of the South West nuclear ecosystem, and we are really excited to see what’s next for the region.
