EDF Board to Make Decision on Hinkley Point Nuclear Project Next Week
July 22 2016 - 2:42AM
Dow Jones News
By Inti Landauro
PARIS--French state-owned power utility Electricite de France SA
late Thursday called a board meeting on July 28 to make a final
decision on whether to go ahead with an GBP18 billion ($23.8
billion) nuclear power project in the U.K. despite the opposition
from the company's labor unions.
The construction of two nuclear reactors in Hinkley Point,
southwestern England, has the backing of the U.K. and France, which
has a majority stake in EDF, but is waiting for the utility's board
to sign off on the project.
The project would boost EDF's presence in the U.K., where it
already operates 15 nuclear reactors.
The Hinkley Point project remains controversial, criticized in
France by some senior EDF officials and labor unions who are
worried about its impact on EDF's finances, and in the U.K. where
some politicians and environment groups consider it too expensive
and risky.
The six labor-union representatives sitting on EDF's 18-member
board have repeatedly opposed the project.
Even though the U.K. government guaranteed EDF and its Chinese
partner a price for the electricity generated by the reactors
significantly above market prices, unions and several company
officials have said the investment required would saddle EDF with
too much debt.
EDF has delayed the final investment decision on the new nuclear
power plant several times as it sought other partners to spread the
costs and approval from the European Commission for U.K.-government
financial support for the project.
The French government has backed the project and announced a
cash injection of EUR3 billion ($3.3 billion) in EDF to help the
company develop the project, which would lead to job creation in
France and would buoy beleaguered state-owned nuclear firm Areva
SA, which manufactures nuclear reactors.
Write to Inti Landauro at inti.landauro@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 22, 2016 02:27 ET (06:27 GMT)
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