View on the ground

Hinkley Point

Hinkley Point, on the Somerset coast between Minehead and Burnham-on-Sea, was one of the eleven sites that could potentially host a new nuclear station included on the Government’s list published on 15th April 2009.

Hinkley Point was also included on the final list of ten nominated sites which was issued on 9th November 2009 (It was proposed to drop Dungeness from the list). This was part of a consultation on Draft National Policy Statements (NPSs) on Energy Infrastructure. The draft Nuclear NPS included a site assessment for Hinkley Point.

Hinkley Point is home to two closed Magnox reactors (Hinkley Point A), owned by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, (NDA). These reactors are being decommissioning by Magnox South Ltd, on behalf of the NDA, which is a company owned by Energy Solutions. Hinkley Point is also the site of two operating Advanced Gas-cooled Reactors (Hinkley Point B), owned by British Energy, which is now part of EDF Energy. British Energy held various public meetings in the area around Hinkley Point in October 2009.

Hinkley Point is expected to be the first new station for which planning permission is sought. EDF Energy is planning to build 3.2 gigawatts (GW), at Hinkley followed by 3.2GW Sizewell. This would probably mean the construction of two 1.6GW European Pressurised Water Reactors at Hinkley. The most recent schedule (May 2010) of dates by when the Infrastructure Planning Commission expects to receive planning applications to construct new nuclear power plants and other infrastructure projects shows an application is expected to be received from EDF in December 2010. The second, also from EDF Energy would be for Sizewell in Suffolk in June 2011.

Horizon Nuclear Power is expected to apply for permission to build at Wylfa on Anglesey in early 2012 and Oldbury in Gloucestershire in 2014.

In January 2010 EDF Energy submitted a request to the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) for an Environmental Impact Assessment 'Scoping Opinion'. This request was accompanied by an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Scoping Report.  The IPC published its Scoping Opinion in April 2010 which sets out the scope of detailed studies proposed to establish the environmental impact of the project. This will result in an Environmental Statement which is an essential part of the planning application.
 

The proposed pylon route through North Somerset has been provoking considerable opposition.

Middlesex University Flood Hazard Research Centre looked at the effect of expected sea level rises and increases in storm surge over the next 200 years at Hinkley Point and concluded the site appears to be vulnerable. Defending the site is "likely to become economically unsustainable". It cannot be considered a suitable location for a new reactor.
 

Local group: Stop Hinkley Expansion

Watch a video of Jonathon Porritt addressing a packed meeting of the Stop Hinkley campaign. A new nuclear power station at Hinkley point is not needed, he said, and would leave an unacceptable legacy to future generations.

Expert questions EPR safety 

The UK's leading independent nuclear consultant questioned the engineering assumptions behind the safety claims at the proposed new reactors at Hinkley Point. Dr John Large, Director of Large & Associates, showed figures questionning EDF's confidence at a public meeting in Bridgwater on 13th October and cited highly radioactive 'high burn-up' fuel as potentially adding to the risks.

The fuel in an EPR would have double the radio-toxicity of Sizewell B, with 60,000 units compared to 30,000 units despite similar amounts of fuel: 130 tonnes compared to 110 tonnes.

He showed that his predictions for potential mortality and evacuation, using a standard model, collided with those of EDF who plan to build two giant 1600 megawatt reactors at Hinkley, the largest reactors in the world. He said they deny that a 'containment failure' could occur in their European Pressurised Reactors and that a lesser accident, a 'containment by-pass' would result in zero early deaths with just four 'late deaths' and 2,458 requiring evacuation.

Dr Large questionned EDF's optimism saying, "The bigger the reactor, the more advanced the fuel, the smaller the release fraction tolerable. The challenge for the French is the ability to engineer the containment and fuel to release less into the environment during the course of an accident than existing reactors would." He added "reactor designs have not had time to adjust to terrorism" arguing against EDF's claim that a determined terrorist could do no worse than a random natural event.

John Large's Presentation viewable on: http://www.largeassociates.com/PapersReports.htm

Stop Hinkley Report on John Large's presentation: http://stophinkley.org/EngRevu/Nuclear%20NO%20Build%20at%20Hinkleyv2.pdf

Last Updated 4th June 2010

This section of the website has been developed thanks to funding from Polden-Puckham Charitable Foundation, and the Andrew Wainwright Reform Trust.