Nuclear shortage 'threatens blackouts'

THE Government will have to commit to building nuclear power stations or leave the country under the threat of energy blackouts for years to come, the engineering industry is warning Downing Street.

Ahead of a General Election in which the cost of electricity and security of supply could become an issue, the Institution of Civil Engineers is accusing the Government of sweeping the debate on the future of nuclear power under the carpet.

'It would be highly irresponsible for the Government to dismiss the option of nuclear power for future energy supplies,' said ICE executive David Anderson.

He cited its own report which claims the British public have been hoodwinked into believing green energy from wind farms will be capable of replacing the volume of power being lost by closing down nuclear stations.

'Failure to consider nuclear power could lead to over-dependency on imported energy supplies. Politically, nuclear is not a vote winner - but nor is the constant threat of blackouts in the future,' said Anderson. 'Nuclear power stations currently produce 22% of the UK's electricity but are closing down at a rapid rate.

'By 2023, 11 will have shut down, leaving just one [Sizewell B in Suffolk] generating electricity. With no current plan for replacements and a five-to-10-year wait from drawing board to completion, the Institution of Civil Engineers is asking how the gap in generating electricity will be filled. The public-overestimate the contribution renewable sources, such as wind, can make.

'By 2020, the public reckons renewables would contribute nearly a third of electricity generation. In fact, it is likely to be less than half that - at its very best 15%.'

There has effectively been a moratorium on the building of nuclear power stations since the beginning of the decade after Tony Blair's major review of the energy industry.

This status quo undoubtedly played a role in destabilising British Energy, the country's major nuclear operator which has only just come back to the stock market after a Government-led rescue and major restructuring.

British Energy is forecasting that its portfolio of nuclear stations will start closing from the end of the decade - beginning with Dungeness in Kent - and has only limited hope of five-year life extensions.

The ICE believes nuclear stations can easily be built on current sites which benefit from being geographically remote and from having existing connections to the country's transmission network.