Nuclear Power Plants: British Government Lures Private Investors With 20 Billion Euros in State Aid for Sizewell C Nuclear Power Plant
London - No new nuclear power plant has been connected to the grid in the UK since 1995. At the same time, a whole series of older nuclear power plants have already been shut down and decommissioned. In addition to the Hinkley Point C power station currently under construction, the course has now been set for a further nuclear power station (Sizewell C). As no nuclear power plant can be built without state involvement, the British government has to step in with billions in subsidies.
British government backs Sizewell C - investment decision expected in summer 2025
According to the British Guardian, Sizewell C is the “most heralded nuclear power station in history”. Unlike previous announcements, however, this time Energy Minister Ed Miliband is bringing along billions more from the state that could actually make construction possible. The government has made a commitment of 14.2 billion pounds (approx. 16.7 billion euros) for the period 2026 to 2030, bringing the total funding to around 18 billion pounds (21.2 billion euros). However, it remains to be seen whether this will be enough to attract additional private investors.
If no agreement is reached with institutional investors in the current year 2025, the government could provide further state subsidies to avoid additional delays.
Construction of the Sizewell C nuclear power plant since 2020
All eight nuclear power plants still in operation apart from Sizewell B will be shut down by 2030. Four new nuclear power plant units are to be built to compensate for the shutdowns. Hinkley Point C, with two EPR units of 1,600 MW each, is scheduled to go into operation by early 2030 at the latest. Sizewell C, also equipped with two 1,600 MW EPR reactors, is also being built by the French state-owned company EDF.
Official approval was granted in July 2022 and the first construction work to develop the site began in 2024. Investment and, above all, unresolved financing issues have delayed construction to date.
Originally, a joint venture between EDF (80 %) and the Chinese state-owned China General Nuclear Power Group, CGN (20 %) was to realize the project. In 2022, the British government bought back the Chinese share for around 680 million pounds (approx. 800 million euros). Today, the UK holds around 83.5 percent and EDF 16.5 percent of the shares.
Financing Sizewell C via the RAB model
The British government is relying on the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model for financing. This allows costs to be passed on to electricity customers during the construction phase via a levy - even if the plant is not yet supplying electricity. Prior to the final investment decision, the British government and EDF initially bear the costs; from the start of construction, the expenses are entered into the RAB model and distributed proportionately to consumers via levies.
The amount of this levy is estimated to be between 1 and 2 pounds (approx. 1.20 to 2.35 euros) per month during the construction period. However, the exact amount is still open and depends, among other things, on the construction period, total costs and investors' return expectations.
The estimated project costs for Sizewell C are between 30 and 40 billion pounds (35 to 47 billion euros) and are therefore slightly lower than the costs for Hinkley Point C. The estimated costs for Hinkley Point C, which comprises two blocks of 1,600 MW each and is due to be connected to the grid around 2030, are around 50 billion euros, i.e. around 25 billion euros per unit.
About the use of nuclear energy in the UK
The UK currently has a total of 47 nuclear power plants, two of which (Hinkley Point C1 and C2) are under construction. 36 nuclear power stations have been permanently decommissioned to date. None of the British nuclear power plants that have been shut down have yet been completely dismantled (greenfield sites). According to the British nuclear power plant decommissioning plan, a further eight nuclear power plants (Torness, units 1 and 2, Heysham 2, units 7 and 8, Heysham 1, units 1 and 2 and Hartlepool, units 1 and 2) will be decommissioned by 2030.
After that, only Sizewell B (1,250 MW) will remain in operation as the only nuclear power plant in the British nuclear fleet - until Hinkley Point C (3,200 MW) goes online by early 2030 at the latest. It was originally scheduled to be commissioned in 2025.
According to the British government's CfD register, the state-guaranteed minimum tariff for electricity from the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant is currently 14.9 cents per kilowatt hour (strike price, as at April 1, 2025). The strike price is dynamic and inflation-indexed, i.e. linked to the British inflation rate, and will continue to rise over the next few years.
Sizewell C (3,200 MW) is expected to go into operation around 2040 based on previous experience and construction times for the EDF reactors.
Source: IWR Online, 18 Jun 2025