Government announce plans to build first major nuclear power plant in Cheshire

The government's announced plans to kick-start building Europe's first advanced nuclear power station in Cheshire.

It's awarding £196 million to Urenco to build a uranium enrichment facility.

This will produce fuel by 2031 that would be ready to export or use domestically, and could power UK homes in the next decade. Ministers say this will put an end to Russia’s reign as the only commercial producer of high-assay low enriched uranium (HALEU) and ensure other countries are not reliant on Russian exports.

Boost for Cheshire

The new facility will support around 400 highly-skilled jobs, helping to boost the local supply chain and grow the economy.

Located at Capenhurst in Cheshire, the government says this will cement the status of the North-West of England as a world leader in nuclear fuel production - and builds on the Prime Minister’s ‘national endeavour’ to secure the future of the UK’s thriving nuclear industry.

Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, said:

“Building our own uranium enrichment plant is essential if we want to prize Putin’s blood-soaked hands off Europe’s energy market.

“Russia has been the sole provider of this powerful nuclear fuel for too long and this marks the latest step in pushing him out of the energy market entirely.

“The wider future of British nuclear remains a critical national endeavour – guaranteeing nuclear and energy security, and reducing energy bills for Brits.”

Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Claire Coutinho, said:

“We stood up to Putin on oil and gas, and we won’t let him hold us to ransom on nuclear fuel.

“Backing Urenco to build a uranium enrichment plant here in the UK will mean we are the first European nation outside Russia to produce advanced nuclear fuel.

“This will support hundreds of new jobs, bring investment for the people in Cheshire and is a huge win for energy security at home and abroad.”

HALEU uranium power

HALEU is needed to power most advanced modular reactors which are crucial to meeting the UK’s ambition to quadruple nuclear capacity by 2050 – the biggest expansion in 70 years. Like small modular reactors, they can be made in factories and transform how power stations are built by making construction faster and less expensive.

These advanced reactors are more efficient and use novel fuels, coolants, and technologies to generate low-carbon electricity. Their high heat output means they can also be used to decarbonise industry, produce hydrogen for transport or heat for homes.

Urenco’s facility will have the capacity to produce up to 10 tonnes of HALEU per year by 2031. When fabricated into fuel, ten tonnes of HALEU could contain as much energy as over one million tons of coal.

The funding is part of the £300 million HALEU programme announced in January this year. Urenco, which is part owned by the UK Government and renowned for nuclear enrichment services, will co-fund the facility.

The programme builds on commitments made at COP28 which saw the G7 nuclear nations or ‘Sapporo 5’ - Canada, Japan, France, the UK and US – commit to increasing uranium production, as they are responsible for 50% of the world’s nuclear fuel conversion and enrichment capability.

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