The company building a new nuclear power plant in Somerset has been forced to spend £700m protecting marine life – including a “fish disco” which bombards animals with noise.
The cost of the measures at Hinkley Point C is more than the entire amount the Government spends on protecting nature in England each year, but they are forecast to save the life of only one salmon every 12 years.
The price tag for the “fish protection measures” at Hinkley is revealed in a new review of why it is so difficult and expensive to build nuclear power in the UK, commissioned by Sir Keir Starmer.
The review’s authors, who are pushing for a “radical” overhaul of nuclear regulation, highlighted it as a case study of the extreme costs imposed on companies trying to expand the country’s nuclear capacity – costs which are eventually passed on to customers in the form of higher energy bills.
EDF, the company building Hinkley Point C, is implementing three different systems to protect fish which would otherwise risk being sucked in to the plant’s cooling system.
The total cost is £700m, including £50m for an “acoustic fish deterrent” – nicknamed a “fish disco” – emitting pulses of sound to repel fish.
EDF’s own modelling found that the deterrent systems will every 12 years save the lives of 0.083 salmon, 0.028 sea trout, 6 river lamprey, 18 Allis shad, and 528 twaite shad.
If divided equally between the households of the UK, the £700m bill would amount to £24 per family.
The episode is reminiscent of the £125m “bat tunnel” being built as part of the High Speed 2 rail line, which has prompted ministers to promise they will reform how nature is protected during major infrastructure works.
Sam Richards of pro-growth campign group Britain Remade said: “At a time when Britain’s electricity bills are among the world’s highest, our regulatory system forced EDF to spend nearly £280,000 per fish protected. This is indefensible.
“These types of modifications have added years in construction and billions in costs, costs that ultimately get passed onto consumers in higher bills.”
EDF’s own modelling found that the fish deterrent systems save the lives of 0.083 salmon, 0.028 sea trout, 6 river lamprey, 18 Allis shad, and 528 twaite shad over a decade (Photo: Simon Dawson/Getty)The review found that nuclear power has become too difficult to build in the UK because companies must answer to multiple different regulators, all imposing their own conditions, and because a culture of caution has meant that officials are excessively afraid of risk.
Chair of the independent taskforce behind the review, John Fingleton, called for the Prime Minister to take personal control of the system to drive through change, telling him: “You will be told you need time to consider, consult and dilute. I encourage you to resist. The time for action is now.”
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Recommendations include a new Commission for Nuclear Regulation which could coordinate and overrule other regulators and planning bodies. The review said that streamlining the nuclear rules could boost the economy, bring down the cost of zero-carbon energy and help national security by making it easier to maintain the nuclear deterrent.
Fingleton said: “This is a once in a generation opportunity. The problems are systemic, rooted in unnecessary complexity, and a mindset that favours process over outcome.
“Our solutions are radical, but necessary. By simplifying regulation, we can maintain or enhance safety standards while finally delivering nuclear capacity safely, quickly, and affordably.”
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said in response: “This Government is delivering a golden age of new nuclear as we drive for energy sovereignty and abundance.
“A crucial part of that is delivering the reforms we need to drive forward new nuclear in a safe, affordable way.”
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