Sizewell B nuclear plant granted 20-year lifetime extension as Government agrees deal
Sizewell B nuclear power station has been granted a 20-year extension from the Government to generate electricity until 2055.
The plant in Suffolk, which is estimated to provide around 3 per cent of the UK’s electricity, had been due to close in 2035.
But the Government has agreed a deal with French energy company EDF, which owns 80 per cent of the site, and British Gas owner Centrica, which owns the rest.
In an £800million investment, Sizewell B will receive a guaranteed price of £70.50 per megawatt-hour from April 2035 to March 2055.
It means investors are protected if wholesale prices fall below that. The site is one of five working UK nuclear power stations and makes electricity for 2.5m homes a year.
It comes as new nuclear projects at Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C face multiple delays. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: ‘This extension will help produce the clean power our country needs.’
Powering on: The Sizewell B nuclear power station in Suffolk, which is estimated to provide around 3% of the UK’s electricity, had been due to close in 2035
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