| NIA submits nuclear justification to UK government | | Print | |
| Wednesday, 04 June 2008 | |
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A KEY milestone towards enabling nuclear energy to continue to make a valuable contribution to the UK was passed today when the Nuclear Industry Association (NIA) delivered a formal Justification application to government for new nuclear power stations. The application, by the UK trade association for nuclear sets-out in a high-level assessment how the benefits of candidate new nuclear reactor technology such as the AP1000, ESBWR or EPR outweigh any potential radiological health detriments. In the application the NIA concludes that the security of supply and carbon reduction benefits of a programme of new nuclear power would far outweigh the limited potential for any health detriments. Justification is part of the regulatory and legal process following the government’s announcement in January that nuclear was in the public interest and that new nuclear power stations should be developed. The Justification assessment must be carried out before new build commences. It is required to meet the European Union’s Basic Safety Standards Directive and requires applicants to describe and assess the net benefits and weigh them against the health and other potential detriments of any new nuclear practice. While Justification is an important milestone along the way, any specific new-build projects will require full regulatory approvals including safety, environmental and planning consents in due course. The NIA, which represents some 140 nuclear companies based in the UK, is making the application supported by major utilities including British Energy, EDF, EON, RWE, Vattenfall and Iberdrola. NIA chief executive Keith Parker said: “As the main voice for the UK nuclear industry it is right that we should lead in such an important area for the future development of our industry.” “We feel the application is extremely comprehensive and puts a very strong case that the net benefits of new nuclear power far outweigh any possible detriments.” Government will now review the application and publish a draft decision document ahead of a public consultation on the process later in the year. A full decision is expected in 2009. Comments (0)
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