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Huge British Nuclear Project Becomes a Diplomatic Flash Point
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602170/huge-british-nuclear-project-becomes-a-diplomatic-flash-point/[font face=Serif][font size=5]Huge British Nuclear Project Becomes a Diplomatic Flash Point[/font]
[font size=4]Hinkley Point’s demise could mark the end of the era of behemoth nuclear plants.[/font]
by Richard Martin | August 15, 2016
[font size=3]Once considered a vital part of Britain’s clean-energy future, the beleaguered Hinkley Point nuclear plant project looked further than ever from becoming reality this week as a row erupted between the three countries developing the massive facility: the United Kingdom, France, and China.
Originally launched in 2013, Hinkley Point is projected to cost 18 billion pounds ($23.2 billion) and will supply power at $119.40 per megawatt-hour—more than twice the price of wholesale electricity in Britain today. British officials have raised concerns over the involvement of China General Nuclear Power Company (CGNPC), the state-owned nuclear giant putting up one-third of the project’s cost, in light of the indictment of a Chinese-American nuclear engineer charged with spying for the company. Allen Ho, a naturalized American citizen, was charged in April with “conspiracy to unlawfully engage and participate in the production and development of special nuclear material outside the United States, without the required authorization from the U.S. Department of Energy.”
Ho’s alleged corporate espionage on behalf of China General Nuclear has given rise to dark fears of a Chinese “back door” into the operations of the U.K. grid. Security concerns were reportedly the reason behind new prime minister Theresa May’s decision last month to freeze the Hinkley Point project until a review of the deal is completed. A May aide wrote an op-ed warning that foreign owners of British nuclear facilities could “build weaknesses into computer systems that will allow them to shut down Britain’s energy production at will.”
China, which hopes to become the world’s leading supplier of nuclear power technology, responded angrily to the Hinkley Point pause. China’s ambassador to London wrote in an op-ed piece in the Financial Times that “China-UK relations are at critical historical juncture,” and that cancellation of the nuclear station could threaten up to 100 billion pounds in future investments.
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[font size=4]Hinkley Point’s demise could mark the end of the era of behemoth nuclear plants.[/font]
by Richard Martin | August 15, 2016
[font size=3]Once considered a vital part of Britain’s clean-energy future, the beleaguered Hinkley Point nuclear plant project looked further than ever from becoming reality this week as a row erupted between the three countries developing the massive facility: the United Kingdom, France, and China.
Originally launched in 2013, Hinkley Point is projected to cost 18 billion pounds ($23.2 billion) and will supply power at $119.40 per megawatt-hour—more than twice the price of wholesale electricity in Britain today. British officials have raised concerns over the involvement of China General Nuclear Power Company (CGNPC), the state-owned nuclear giant putting up one-third of the project’s cost, in light of the indictment of a Chinese-American nuclear engineer charged with spying for the company. Allen Ho, a naturalized American citizen, was charged in April with “conspiracy to unlawfully engage and participate in the production and development of special nuclear material outside the United States, without the required authorization from the U.S. Department of Energy.”
Ho’s alleged corporate espionage on behalf of China General Nuclear has given rise to dark fears of a Chinese “back door” into the operations of the U.K. grid. Security concerns were reportedly the reason behind new prime minister Theresa May’s decision last month to freeze the Hinkley Point project until a review of the deal is completed. A May aide wrote an op-ed warning that foreign owners of British nuclear facilities could “build weaknesses into computer systems that will allow them to shut down Britain’s energy production at will.”
China, which hopes to become the world’s leading supplier of nuclear power technology, responded angrily to the Hinkley Point pause. China’s ambassador to London wrote in an op-ed piece in the Financial Times that “China-UK relations are at critical historical juncture,” and that cancellation of the nuclear station could threaten up to 100 billion pounds in future investments.
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