The costs of the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant project in Somerset (United Kingdom) have jumped by £2.2bn (€2.5bn) and reach now a total of £20.3bn (€23.1bn), while the risk of a deferral in the delivery (COD) of the project is estimated at 15 months for Unit 1 and 9 months for Unit 2. The first reactor would then be commissioned in 2027 instead of late 2025. As a result, the project rate of return is expected to drop from 9% to 8.2%.
EDF has reported that £1.5bn (€1.7bn) of the cost escalation is due to a “better understanding” of the construction operations needed and of the British regulatory requirements, while the estimated delay on the reactors is expected to increase the costs by a further £0.7bn (€0.8bn). However, EDF is still targeting the end of 2025 as the initial commissioning date.
The British government approved the project in October 2016 and the British nuclear regulator (ONR, Office for Nuclear Regulation) granted its first approval regarding the construction in March 2017 and endorsed the placement of the plant's structural concrete, which will shelter the service galleries, in particular the cooling water system.
The Hinkley Point C project will consist of two 1,630 MW Areva EPR reactors and is developed by EDF, CGNPC and CNNC.
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