Nuclear’s £850 million boost for Welsh economy driven by English projects

A new report shows the nuclear industry’s contribution to the Welsh economy grew by 20% in the three years to 2024 to £850 million, with the sector supporting a total of 13,400 jobs across the country, primarily driven by new nuclear projects in England including Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C.

The latest Economic Impact of the Civil Nuclear Industry report, compiled by Oxford Economics and commissioned by the Nuclear Industry Association (NIA), shows the sector generated an extra £150 million in gross value added (GVA) in 2024, up from £700 million in 2021. 830 people are directly employed by the sector in Wales, 25% more than in 2021.

Welsh companies are playing a key role in building the new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point C, supplying tens of thousands of tonnes of Welsh steel. 190 Welsh firms have contracts to work on the new power station with almost £190 million spent with Welsh companies to date.

Hinkley Point C is being built over the border in the South West of England, a region feeling the benefits of the construction of a new station, with the GVA from nuclear totalling £4 billion in 2024, a 50% jump since 2021. NIA analysis shows a comparable contribution would be felt in North Wales, particularly on Anglesey, if a new station is built at Wylfa.

Welsh firms are also helping to build the UK’s next nuclear project at Sizewell C in Suffolk. The project is committed to invest £900 million in Wales and supporting up to 4,700 jobs.

Across the UK in 2024, the civil nuclear sector contributed £20 billion to the economy, underpinned by a record workforce which has soared 35% to 87,000 people since 2021. Each nuclear sector employee contributed an average of £92,000 in GVA to the economy with the sector paying around £9.1 billion in tax payments.

Tom Greatrex, Chief Executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, said:

“Wales is benefiting from jobs and growth that comes with the new nuclear plants being built in England, but this could be greater still with a Welsh project.

“A new project at Wylfa would be the single greatest inward investment ever in Wales, creating thousands of well-paid, skilled jobs, contributing billions of pounds to the Welsh economy and strengthening energy security.

“It’s vital that the UK and Welsh governments urgently sets out a clear plan to build new reactors and bring good jobs and investment back to Wales.”

Kieron Salter, Electrical Engineer, Hinkley Point C, originally from on Ynys Môn said:

“I’m immensely proud to be working at Hinkley Point C as part of a strong group of Welsh workers contributing to one of Britain’s most significant clean energy projects. Having grown up on Ynys Môn, being involved in a Welsh nuclear initiative was always on the cards having had Wylfa on my doorstep. One day, I will return home and apply the skills learned at Hinkley, as I am confident a new project is around the corner for Wales.

“Developing new nuclear projects in Wales, especially on Ynys Môn is vital to ensure that more young Welsh people are given the same opportunity as I had, not only in the nuclear sector, but all the other industries that feed into building a new nuclear power station.”

Sam Moore, Managing Director, Economic Consultancy Oxford Economics, said:

“The nuclear sector continues to make a strong contribution to the Welsh economy, supporting thousands of jobs and creating opportunities for Welsh businesses, despite there being no generating nuclear stations in the country.

“Major new projects across the border in England are a shot in the arm of the sector and the economy in Wales. A new build project in Wales could have a considerable effect on the country’s economy.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

• The full report can be accessed here: https://www.niauk.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Economic-Impact-of-the-Civil-Nuclear-Industry.pdf
• Economic impact analysis of the UK’s civil nuclear sector was undertaken by Oxford Economics in the first quarter of 2025.
• The UK has nine reactors across five nuclear sites providing around 14% of the country’s electricity from 5.9 GW of capacity. Of the current fleet only Sizewell B will be in operation after March 2030. Hinkley Point C is due to come online by the end of the decade.

About the NIA
As the trade association for the civil nuclear industry in the UK, the Nuclear Industry
Association represents 300 companies across the UK’s nuclear supply chain.

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