Gloucestershire “on brink of giant step to new nuclear energy”

Gloucestershire is on the brink of a giant step forward in developing new nuclear energy with the potential of thousands of skilled jobs and millions of pounds flowing into the regional economy.

In an exclusive question and answer interview, Simon Bowen – Chair of the government’s arm’s length body, Great British Nuclear, talks to Ian Mean, Director at Business West.

They discuss, for the first time how land next to the two decommissioned former nuclear sites at Oldbury and Berkeley Green, will now be the sites for nuclear development and hold the key to becoming a major part of the South West Regional nuclear hub.

How exciting is the return of the region as a new nuclear hub?

Simon Bowen: “There is a massive opportunity now with us purchasing Oldbury, and the separate Berkeley project nearby, and all the work that Western Gateway has done with the Severn Edge project.

“When you couple that potential with the scale of the skills and capability that exists within the South West region, it is immensely exciting for nuclear developments.

“Nuclear is well accepted in the region. What people really like about it is the high quality of the jobs – at Barnwood in Gloucester, EDF’s new centre for engineering at Aztec West and all the work in defence at Abbey Wood.

“One of the things I looked at when I visited Berkeley recently was the link with the University Technical College there and with GCHQ in Cheltenham. That is a model of what can be done.”

Can you explain the potential link between Berkeley and Oldbury and how it will work with the siting of the new SMRs (Small Modular Reactors)?

Simon Bowen: “This is still very much in the planning stage. I have made no secret of the fact that I think Oldbury is an absolute prime site for SMRs.

“How much will it pan out? It is a site that might cope with four, five or six SMRs. This is power generation at scale.

“If you focus Oldbury on power generation then with regard to skills development and innovation, you can naturally see a link with Berkeley, which is planned to be developed by others.

“Because of the proximity beween Berkeley and Oldbury you could see the potential of doing a private wire to transmit power between Oldbury and Berkeley.

“So, you can see a bit of a hub for power for both power generation but also for nuclear activity between the two sites.”

When will we get the result of the government’s SMR technology selection process?

Simon Bowen: “The current timescale is Spring—I can’t go any further than that. We have got a way to go in our negotiations with the prospective SMR vendors.

“We are going flat out to make sure it is a rigorous, fair and transparent process.

“There are four prospective SMR vendor companies: GE-Hitachi, Holtec, Rolls-Royce SMR, and Westinghouse.

“They are all credible technology providers who could offer very substantial supply chain content and utilisation.

“No matter which are successful, the UK will not only benefit from GDP growth but there is real potential as a base for export.

“We will end up with a substantial enhancement to GDP and skills no matter who is successful.”

When do you expect to be able to tell us about the plans for siting the SMRs at Oldbury?

Simon Bowen: “Oldbury is one of our sites - Berkeley is a potential development site that has been bought by CVG. It is likely to be a fast follower – it all bodes very well for the region.”

Education and skills are vital for this new technology-what is the implementation plan?

Simon Bowen: “Not in detail yet. But if you were to follow the model used at Hinkley Point C that could show a way ahead.

“It is a model that has also been followed at Sizewell—multi-faceted, multi-certified. It will build on the National College for Nuclear that has been built in Bridgewater. It will be graduates and apprenticeships with higher apprenticeships as well. The Nuclear Skills Task Force is forming this Southwest Hub and that will start to marshal the capabilities required.

“Through Destination Nuclear, we are seeing the major employers coming together to recruit into the market rather than just compete against each other.”

“A skills hub around the South West is being launched and the UTC at Berkeley is a great model for apprenticeships and higher apprenticeships. We will need many hundreds and thousands to be part of that.”

Who will be responsible for funding this training and what is the timescale of the training programme?

Simon Bowen: “Funding will be a combination of private sector and public sector. Already, the Nuclear Skills Task Force has set an objective to quadruple the number of PhDs and double the number of graduates and apprentices.

“Government departments including the Ministry of Defence, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero are funding in partnership with the Department of Education.

“There will also be a responsibility on the companies involved, like GBN. We are starting to pump-prime the education system, but when GBN has appointed both the SMR vendors, and the delivery partners, you’ll see recruitment start to really ramp up.

“You could see that through the second half of next year and into 2026-27.

“When we get to final investment decisions around 2029, construction work will start. So, some of the site works or associated development like any new road will not open until the end of the decade.

“Berkeley is unlikely to be the only training centre needed because of the skills and capability needed in terms of local provision, as we have seen with Bridgewater College for Hinkley Point C, that is crucial.

“A lot of the apprentice-based skills and training of people, who have come from different industries is bound to happen in the local area. Berkeley is well positioned for that.

“But the outline programme says that you do some of the pre-works through the latter half of this decade until the final investment decision – the big Go or No Go – when you the private investment has been agreed along with all the regulatory approvals. That is currently about 2029 and the SMRs would be going online during the mid 2030s. It will be around five years to the Go and then five years of construction. The size of the SMRs themselves is between three to six football pitches.

“You could see a world where you could put one online every three years and then every two years, then possibly every year”

“The government has pledged to decarbonise the grid by 2030, with net zero by 2050. But Hinkley Point will be the first new nuclear development for 20 years.

Do think government is sold on nuclear?

The Secretary of State’s focus is on achieving energy security and delivering the de-carbonisation agenda. Having said that he is very pro-nuclear.

Simon Bowen: “We made an estimate that to take us out to 24 gigawatts – the previous government’s target – was programme of many many billions of pounds.

Once you prove you can build SMRs on time and budget, they are inherently privately financeable.”

What might be the investment be here in Gloucestershire from now?

Simon Bowen: It is going to be measured in 10s of billions, but you are putting infrastructure in place which will last for 60-80 years and possibly longer.

“People smart at the costs of nuclear but the true cost of nuclear is competitive when you compare it with things like offshore wind and other new technologies. These are long term investments, and they are eyewatering numbers but the economics work.

“I would hope that the South West could be the nuclear hub of the UK in the future.

“There will be many thousands of skilled people involved on the construction at Oldbury particularly – 5,000 – 6,000 involved directly and indirectly, and in the operating phase many hundreds of jobs. Those will be a combination of apprentices, graduate and PhD roles.

“The things that keep me awake at night is how on earth we recruit those numbers of people into the area.”

Ian Mean MBE is a member of Gloucestershire County Council’s Economic Growth Board, a former vice-chair of GFirst LEP and former editor of the Western Daily Press