United Kingdom

Nuclear power situation

	Number of nuclear units connected to the grid	Nuclear electricity generation (net TWh)	Nuclear percentage of total electricity supply
United Kingdom	19	69.2	19.5
OECD Europe	150	929.3	27.3
OECD TOTAL	346 (out of 437 worldwide)	2278.1	23.1

Source: Nuclear Energy Data 2007. The complete table for all OECD member countries is also available.

Nuclear power plants: Status and operations

Thirty three nuclear units are in operation in the United Kingdom, representing a total capacity of 11.7 GW(e) and supplying almost 25% of the electricity generated in the country. Table 1 shows the status of the nuclear power plants in the UK, Sizewell B, was connected to the grid in February 1995 and achieved full load in September 1995.

Sizewell B is a modern PWR, built by the UK industry under a licence from the American manufacturer Westinghouse, which incorporates a number of enhanced safety features to meet more stringent safety standards. The unit was completed on schedule and within the provisional budget. All the other nuclear units in operation in the UK are gas-cooled reactors of Magnox and advanced gas cooled (AGR) types. Substantial improvements in the performance of the AGRs have been attained during recent years. The prototype Fast Breeder at Dounreay, which was commissioned in 1976, is currently under-going decommissioning.

In 1998 the national safety authority the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) authorised lifetime extension for all the Magnox units which had reached thirty years of operation. Although the authorisations from the NII do not specify the duration of the lifetime extension, the British regulators have indicated that no safety factors have been identified which would limit the operation of the Magnox reactors to less than 40 years and 50 years for Calder Hall and Chapelcross.

The NII has accepted that the Periodic Safety Reviews of the AGR have shown that all the stations can be expected to operate safely for at least a further 10 years, subject to satisfactory outcomes from routine inspection activities. The NII's assessment of the Periodic Safety Review for Sizewell B was completed in October 2005, allowing the station to continue operating until 2015.

Table 1. Status of Nuclear Power Plants

Station	Type	Capacity	Operator	Status	Reactor Supplier	Construction Date	Criticality Date	Grid Date	Commercial Date	Shutdown Date
BRADWELL	GCR	123	BNFL	Shut down	TNPG	01-Jan-57	01-Aug-61	01-Jul-62	01-Jul-62	2002
BRADWELL	GCR	123	BNFL	Shut down	TNPG	01-Jan-57	01-Apr-62	06-Jul-62	12-Nov-62	2002
CALDER HALL	GCR	50	BNFL	Operational	UKAEA	01-Aug-53	01-May-56	27-Aug-56	01-Oct-56	(2006 to 2008)
CALDER HALL	GCR	50	BNFL	Operational	UKAEA	01-Aug-53	01-Dec-56	01-Feb-57	01-Feb-57
CALDER HALL	GCR	50	BNFL	Operational	UKAEA	01-Aug-55	01-Mar-58	01-Mar-58	01-May-58
CALDER HALL	GCR	50	BNFL	Operational	UKAEA	01-Aug-55	01-Dec-58	01-Apr-59	01-Apr-59
CHAPELCROSS	GCR	50	BNFL	Operational	UKAEA	01-Oct-55	01-Nov-58	01-Feb-59	01-Mar-59	(2008 to 2010)
CHAPELCROSS	GCR	50	BNFL	Operational	UKAEA	01-Oct-55	01-May-59	01-Jul-59	01-Aug-59
CHAPELCROSS	GCR	50	BNFL	Operational	UKAEA	01-Oct-55	01-Aug-59	01-Nov-59	01-Dec-59
CHAPELCROSS	GCR	50	BNFL	Operational	UKAEA	01-Oct-55	01-Dec-59	01-Jan-60	01-Mar-60
DUNGENESS-A	GCR	225	BNFL	Operational	TNPG	01-Jul-60	01-Jun-65	21-Sep-65	28-Oct-65	31-Dec-06
DUNGENESS-A	GCR	225	BNFL	Operational	TNPG	01-Jul-60	01-Sep-65	01-Nov.-65	30-Dec-65	31-Dec-06
DUNGENESS-B1 UNIT A	AGR	555	BE	Operational	APC	01-Oct-65	04-Dec-85	29-Dec-85	01-Apr-89
DUNGENESS-B2 UNIT B	AGR	555	BE	Operational	APC	01-Oct-65	23-Dec-82	03-Apr-83	01-Apr-85
HARTLEPOOL-A1 UNIT A	AGR	605	BE	Operational	NPC	01-Oct-68	24-Jun-83	01-Aug-83	01-Apr-89
HARTLEPOOL-A2 UNIT B	AGR	605	BE	Operational	NPC	01-Oct-68	09-Sep-84	31-Oct-84	01-Apr-89
HEYSHAM-1 UNIT A	AGR	575	BE	Operational	NPC	01-Dec-70	06-Apr-83	09-Jul-83	01-Apr-89
HEYSHAM-1 UNIT B	AGR	575	BE	Operational	NPC	01-Dec-70	03-Jun-84	11-Oct-84	01-Apr-89
HEYSHAM-2 UNIT A	AGR	625	BE	Operational	NPC	01-Aug-80	23-Jun-88	12-Jul-88	01-Apr-89
HEYSHAM-2 UNIT B	AGR	625	BE	Operational	NPC	01-Aug-80	01-Nov-88	11-Nov-88	01-Apr-89
HINKLEY POINT-A	GCR	235	BNFL	Shut down	EE/B&W/T	01-Nov-57	01-May-64	16-Feb-65	30-Mar-65	(2000)
HINKLEY POINT-A	GCR	235	BNFL	Shut down	EE/B&W/T	01-Nov-57	01-Oct-64	19-Mar-65	05-May-65	(2000)
HINKLEY POINT-B UNIT A	AGR	610	BE	Operational	TNPG	01-Sep-67	24-Sep-76	30-Oct-76	02-Oct-78
HINKLEY POINT-B UNIT B	AGR	610	BE	Operational	TNPG	01-Sep-67	01-Feb-76	05-Feb-76	27-Sep-76
HUNTERSTON-B1 UNIT A	AGR	595	BE	Operational	TNPG	01-Nov-67	31-Jan-76	06-Feb-76	06-Feb-76
HUNTERSTON-B2 UNIT B	AGR	595	BE	Operational	TNPG	01-Nov-67	27-Mar-77	31-Mar-77	31-Mar-77
OLDBURY-A	GCR	217	BNFL	Operational	TNPG	01-May-62	01-Aug-67	07-Nov-67	31-Dec-67	(2013)
OLDBURY-A	GCR	217	BNFL	Operational	TNPG	01-May-62	01-Dec-67	06-Apr-68	30-Sep-68	(2013)
SIZEWELL-A	GCR	210	BNFL	Operational	EE/B&W/T	01-Apr-61	01-Jun-65	21-Jan-66	25-Mar-66	31-Dec-06
SIZEWELL-A	GCR	210	BNFL	Operational	EE/B&W/T	01-Apr-61	01-Dec-65	09-Apr-66	15-Sep-66	31-Dec-06
SIZEWELL-B	PWR	1188	BE	Operational	PPC	18-Jul-88	31-Jan-95	14-Feb-95	22-Sep-95
TORNESS UNIT A	AGR	625	BE	Operational	NNC	01-Aug-80	25-Mar-88	25-May-88	25-May-88
TORNESS UNIT B	AGR	625	BE	Operational	NNC	01-Aug-80	23-Dec-88	03-Feb-89	03-Feb-89
WYLFA	GCR	490	BNFL	Operational	EE/B&W/T	01-Sep-63	01-Nov-69	24-Jan-71	01-Nov-71	(2016)
WYLFA	GCR	490	BNFL	Operational	EE/B&W/T	01-Sep-63	01-Sep-70	21-Jul-71	03-Jan-72	(2016)
BERKELEY	GCR	138	BNFL	Shut Down	TNPG	01-Jan-57	01-Aug-61	12-Jun-62	12-Jun-62	31-Mar-89
BERKELEY	GCR	138	BNFL	Shut Down	TNPG	01-Jan-57	01-Mar-62	24-Jun-62	20-Oct-62	26-Oct-88
DOUNREAY FR	FBR	14	UKAEA	Shut Down	UKAEA	01-Mar-55	14-Nov-59	01-Oct-62	01-Oct-62	01-Mar-77
HUNTERSTON-A1	GCR	150	BNFL	Shut Down	GEC	01-Oct-57	01-Aug-63	05-Feb-64	05-Feb-64	30-Mar-90
HUNTERSTON-A2	GCR	150	BNFL	Shut Down	GEC	01-Oct-57	01-Mar-64	01-Jun-64	01-Jul-64	31-Dec-89
PFR DOUNREAY	FBR	234	UKAEA	Shut Down	TNPG	01-Jan-66	01-Mar-74	10-Jan-75	01-Jul-76	31-Mar-94
TRAWSFYNYDD	GCR	195	BNFL	Shut Down	APC	01-Jul-59	01-Sep-64	14-Jan-65	24-Mar-65	06-Feb-91
TRAWSFYNYDD	GCR	195	BNFL	Shut Down	APC	01-Jul-59	01-Dec-64	02-Feb-65	24-Mar-65	04-Feb-91
WINDSCALE AGR	AGR	32	UKAEA	Shut Down	VARIOUS	01-Nov-58	09-Aug-62	01-Feb-63	01-Mar-63	03-Apr-81
WINFRITH SGHWR	SGHWR	92	UKAEA	Shut Down	ICL/FE	01-May-63	01-Sep-67	01-Dec-67	01-Jan-68	11-Sep-90

Source: IAEA Power Reactor Information System as of 31-Dec-2002. Years between brackets are based on authorised lifetime extension by NII.

In June 2002, following an economic review of the operation of its Magnox reactor fleet, BNFL announced it was bringing forward the closure dates of the Calder Hall and Chapelcross power stations to March 2003 and March 2005 respectively. Both stations have relatively small generating capacity giving rise to relatively high overhead costs making them uneconomic against a background of continuing low wholesale electricity prices.

Notwithstanding British Energy's decision, the government has concluded that it is reasonable to assume that the existing technology will not be lost and that the option to build new nuclear power stations will be available for some time to come, albeit with first-of-a-kind costs attached.

Through Sizewell B, which is a modern PWR reactor built only recently in line with international standards, British Energy has access to the latest technology in this area. The company has made it clear that it will be able to keep up with the latest developments, both through operating its new station and by taking on overseas consultancy projects.

In November 1995, the Atomic Energy Authority Act 1995 became law, enabling the Authority to privatise its commercial activities, which have been known in recent years as AEA Technology.

Current organisational chart

A simplified chart of the main operations of the United Kingdom nuclear power programme is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Structure of the main operations of the UK nuclear power programme

Supply of nuclear power plants

The services provided by AEA Technology, British Energy, British Nuclear Fuels, and many more industrial companies cover a very wide range of activities. These include component supply, fuel supply, fuel reprocessing, services in the area of radioactive waste management and aspects of advanced reactor engineering.

Operation of nuclear power plants

The UK's AGRs and single PWR are now owned and operated by the holding company British Energy through its subsidiaries. The Magnox stations have been transferred to British Nuclear Fuels plc (BNFL). BNFL now owns and operates six Magnox stations in both England and Scotland and is in the process of decommissioning a further five.

Fuel cycle and waste management

Apart from raw uranium mining, the UK has an independent nuclear fuel cycle capability. The full range of the nuclear fuel cycle services - from fuel enrichment and manufacture through to spent fuel reprocessing, transport, waste management and decommissioning - are provided to the UK and international markets by British Nuclear Fuels plc (BNFL), which is wholly owned by the government.

The government announced in July 1999 that they are looking to introduce a Private Public Partnership into BNFL, subject to progress towards achieving a range of safety, health, environmental and business performance targets, and further work by DTI and its advisers.

Part of the government's 1995 review into the future prospects of nuclear power in the United Kingdom confirmed that BNFL would continue to offer customers the full range of nuclear fuel cycle services and restated the government's continuing support for the company in developing its overseas markets.

Fuel enrichment in the UK is carried out at Capenhurst near Chester by Urenco Capenhurst Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Urenco Ltd., the holding company for the Urenco Group. The Urenco Group is the joint Anglo-Dutch-German organisation which operates uranium enrichment plants in all three countries using centrifuge technology.

Uranium refining and conversion are carried out at BNFL's Springfields site which processes several tonnes of uranium each year for UK and overseas customers. Springfields has the expertise to manufacture fuel for all major reactor designs world-wide and a new, integrated fuels complex was officially opened in July 1996.

Spent fuel from the UK's Magnox and AGRs, and overseas light water reactors is reprocessed at BNFL's Sellafield site. The company's Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant (THORP) began operations in March 1994 and has so far sheared and dissolved more than 2 000 tonnes of spent fuel. It is expected that some 7 000 tonnes of spent nuclear fuel will be reprocessed in its first ten years of operation.

BNFL have constructed and are commissioning the Sellafield Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuel plant which will manufacture MOX fuel for overseas customers using a blend of plutonium (recovered from the reprocessing of spent fuel) and uranium.

Nirex's principal current activity is to provide advice to waste producers on the transportation and packaging of wastes by means of its system of letters of comfort. Its long term future will be determined by the results of the government's current review of radioactive waste management policy.

Most low-level waste (LLW) is disposed of at either BNFL's Drigg surface disposal facility or at the disposal facilities at UKAEA's Dounreay site. Long-lived LLW is stored and will be disposed of in Nirex' proposed facility. Intermediate-level waste (ILW) is currently stored, mainly at the centres of production, and will be disposed of in the proposed Nirex facility. High-level wastes are currently stored, either raw or in vitrified form, mainly by BNFL at its Sellafield site, for a minimum of 50 years to cool. No decisions on disposal have yet been taken and these will form part of a forthcoming government review, in the meantime the government is undertaking a research project to study this issue.

Nuclear sites are licensed by the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII), the regulator responsible for overseeing their safe operation. Disposals of radioactive wastes may only be made under authorisations granted by the Environment Agency (or in Scotland the Scottish Environment Protection Agency) but under operational agreements between them and the NII, the latter oversees waste operations on licensed sites.

For additional information on the UK's radioactive waste management programme please see the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency's Radioactive Waste Management Programmes in OECD/NEA Member Countries.

Research and development activities

Nuclear accounted for some 47% of the DTI's Energy research and development expenditure in 1995-96 (45% in 1994-95). This expenditure went on research into decommissioning and radioactive waste management services, safety and health, fusion and safeguards commissioned with the UK Atomic Energy Authority (a public corporation) and the Joint European Torus (JET) project run by Euratom. British Energy and BNFL are directly responsible for their own research expenditure.

International co-operation and initiatives

The United Kingdom is a member of the European Union (EU), the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (OECD/NEA) and the IAEA as well as other bilateral and multilateral organisations. The United Kingdom government supports EU programmes in the field of nuclear safety and nuclear waste management and participates in many OECD/NEA and IAEA projects.

Historical development and current nuclear power organisational structure

In 1954 the Atomic Energy Authority Act established the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) with responsibility for the UK nuclear power programme. The programme was to concentrate on the development of gas cooled reactors. The world's first industrial scale nuclear power station to demonstrate the commercial potential of generating electricity through nuclear fission, at Calder Hall in Cumbria, was commissioned by the UKAEA in 1956. Calder Hall was soon followed by a station of similar design, Chapelcross in Scotland; now operated by British Nuclear Fuels plc (BNFL), both these stations continue to generate electricity today after 40 years service.

Calder Hall and Chapelcross were Magnox prototypes, and nine full scale Magnox power stations were subsequently commissioned in the UK between 1962 and 1971. The Magnox stations were so-called from the magnesium alloy used to make the fuel can which contains the natural uranium fuel elements. The reactors use CO2 as coolant. These stations are now owned by BNFL Magnox Generation and four are still in operation, while five are in the process of being decommissioned.

In 1964 it was decided that the UK-developed advanced gas cooled reactor, the AGR, should succeed the Magnox as the principal source of nuclear power in the UK. Seven AGR stations, making use of enriched uranium fuel, were commissioned between 1976 and 1988 and these are now owned and operated by British Energy.

As part of the reorganisation of the UKAEA under the Atomic Energy Authority Act in 1971, BNFL was set up as a private limited company and subsequently transformed into a public limited company. The fuel cycle operations previously undertaken by the UKAEA were transferred to BNFL. BNFL now provides the full range of nuclear fuel cycle services to the UK and international markets and in 1994 it sheared its first irradiated fuel in the Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant (THORP), constructed to reprocess domestic and overseas spent oxide fuel.

In 1978 the Government decided that for future nuclear power station design it would be appropriate to pursue the Pressurised Water Reactor (PWR) option, the most widely used design outside the UK. Subsequently the site at Sizewell in Suffolk was chosen and construction began in 1988 after a lengthy public inquiry. This station, Sizewell B, first supplied electricity to the national grid in February 1995.

UK Nirex Ltd was incorporated in 1985. Its owners are BNFL, BE and the UKAEA. Its development of a deep disposal facility for intermediate and long-lived low level wastes ceased in 1997.

In its 1988 White Paper "Privatising Electricity", the government announced its intention to privatise the UK electricity supply industry. However, it later removed the nuclear stations from its privatisation plans for economic reasons and also because of concerns about the operational performance of AGRs at that time and uncertainties over the financing of any new PWRs. The government did however recognise that there were advantages to be gained from the continued operation of existing nuclear power stations, in their contribution to security of supply and protection of the environment.

When announcing the government decision not to privatise nuclear power, the Secretary of State for Energy also announced that there was to be a moratorium on public sector construction of new nuclear stations (the Sizewell B PWR was already being built) until the government conducted a review of the prospects for nuclear power.

National laws and regulations

For additional information on national laws and regulations concerning nuclear power please see the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency's Analytical Study of Nuclear Legislation in OECD countries.

Safety authority and the licensing process

The safety of UK nuclear installations, and the protection of employees and the public from the potential hazards caused by them, is governed principally by provisions in the Nuclear Installations Act 1965, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the Ionising Radiation Regulations 1999 made under it and the Radioactive Substances Act 1993. No site may be used for the construction or operation of a commercial nuclear installation unless appropriate approval or planning permission has been given and a nuclear site licence is granted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

The Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) is that part of the HSE with delegated responsibility for administering the licensing function.

The NII will not grant a nuclear site licence unless satisfied that a prospective operator has the capacity to meet all their stringent safety requirements from design through to decommissioning, in adherence to the licence conditions attached to the site licence. So to demonstrate to the NII that safety will be properly controlled at all stages of the life cycle of plant on licensed sites, the operator is required to produce a comprehensive written 'safety case' for each plant. The safety case must be continually revised and updated throughout the plant's operation, to take account of any changes in its operating conditions, and a new safety case be similarly established and maintained for decommissioning.

In 2003 the UK introduced the Nuclear Industries Security Regulations in order to consolidate and upgrade the security regulations for the civilian nuclear industry. The new regulations include provisions on the security of nuclear premises, the security of transport of nuclear materials and the security of sensitive nuclear information.

Main national laws and regulations governing nuclear power

General legislation:

1965 Nuclear Installations Act as amended;

1974 Health and Safety at Work Act;

1989 Atomic Energy Act;

1993 Radioactive Substances Act;

2001 Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act;

2001 Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations; and

2003 Nuclear Industries Security Regulations.

Current issues and developments

Energy policy

The conclusions of the Government's 1995 nuclear review confirmed the government's commitment to nuclear power, provided it remained competitive and was able to maintain rigorous standards of safety and environmental protection. However, the government recognised, against the background of the current electricity market, that providing public sector support for a new nuclear power station would constitute a significant intervention in the electricity market and that current and foreseeable circumstances did not warrant such an intervention.

The review also concluded that moving as much of the nuclear generating industry as was practicable into the private sector, with its associated liabilities, would bring benefits for the industry, electricity consumers and the taxpayer. Back in 1989, the nuclear stations had had to be excluded from the privatisation of the other parts of the electricity supply industry. However, the review recognised that the overall performance of the nuclear generators had been transformed in the period since. They had removed many of the uncertainties about the costs of managing spent fuel and waste and the decommissioning of plants. The performance of the Advanced Gas-cooled Reactors (AGRs) had vastly improved and a Pressurised Water Reactor (PWR), Sizewell B, was now in operation and performing excellently.

Accordingly the nuclear generating industry was reorganised to enable its more modern part, with its associated liabilities, to be transferred to the private sector. Two subsidiaries, Nuclear Electric Ltd (NEL) (now British Energy Generation Ltd) and Scottish Nuclear (SN) (now British Energy Generation (UK) Ltd) are now owned by a Great Britain-wide holding company, British Energy Generation plc which is responsible for seven AGRs and Sizewell B. British Energy was privatised in July 1996.

The older plants, the six operating Magnox stations, and five closed Magnox stations and their associated liabilities, remain in the public sector and are the responsibility of British Nuclear Fuels plc, the UK's government-owned supplier of reprocessing and other nuclear fuel cycle services. BNFL operate two Magnox stations of their own, as BNFL Magnox Generation.

Privatisation and deregulation

The electricity sector has seen a large amount of merger and acquisition activity over the last several years, with vertical integration on the increase. Responding to this, British Energy (BE) is seeking to grow its supply business and broaden its customer base and has proposed to acquire the retail electricity and gas supply business of SWALEC plc, a subsidiary of Hyder. The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry announced on 23 September 1999 that, having received satisfactory assurances, he had decided not to refer the proposed acquisition to the competition Commission.

Appendix 1 - International, Multilateral and Bilateral Agreements

Appendix 2 - Directory of the main organisations, instituions and companies involved in nuclear power-related activites

References

Related NEA publications

Nuclear Energy Data
Nuclear Energy Data is the NEA’s annual compilation of essential statistics on electricity generation and nuclear power in OECD countries. The reader will have quick and easy reference to the status of and projected trends in total electricity generating capacity, nuclear generating capacity, and actual electricity production, as well as to supply and demand for nuclear fuel cycle services.

Nuclear Legislation in OECD Countries: United Kingdom
Regulatory and Institutional Framework for Nuclear Activities
Each country profile in this valuable reference work provides a detailed review of a full range of nuclear law topics. These include: the general regulatory regime, including mining; radioactive substances and equipment; nuclear installations; trade in nuclear materials; radiation protection; radioactive waste management; non-proliferation and physical protection; transport; and nuclear third party liability.

United Kingdom

Nuclear power situation

National laws and regulations

Current issues and developments

Nuclear power situation

Nuclear power plants: Status and operations

Current organisational chart

Supply of nuclear power plants

Operation of nuclear power plants

Fuel cycle and waste management

Research and development activities

International co-operation and initiatives

Historical development and current nuclear power organisational structure

National laws and regulations

Safety authority and the licensing process

Main national laws and regulations governing nuclear power

Current issues and developments

Energy policy

Privatisation and deregulation

Appendix 1 - International, Multilateral and Bilateral Agreements

Related links

Related NEA publications