Greg Clarke says it was a 鈥済enerous package of potential support鈥�
The government has revealed it was willing to take a one-third equity stake in a new nuclear plant Wylfa Newydd and would have provided all required debt financing to complete its construction.
Japanese conglomerate Hitatchi suspended the project this morning after failing to find enough private-sector backers or agree a workable deal with the British government.
But in an update to parliament business minister Greg Clarke said the UK offered 鈥渁 significant and generous package of potential support that goes beyond what any government has been willing to consider in the past鈥�.
Clarke said Hitatchi was offered a 鈥榮trike price鈥� 鈥� a promised rate per output 鈥� of 拢75 per megawatt hour for electricity fed into the grid.
While Hinkley Point C has a strike price of 拢92.50 per megawatt hour, Clarke told the house this would have been too high for Wylfa as renewable technologies had become cheaper, and the government was already offering other financial support.
The business secretary said that while Hitatchi have suspended operations, 鈥渢hey wish to continue discussions with the government on bringing forward new nuclear projects at both Wylfa and Oldbury, and we intend to work closely with them in the weeks and months ahead鈥�.
Clarke also said the government鈥檚 assessment of whether an regulated asset base model could be used to finance new nuclear plants would be published by summer at the latest.
He reiterated the government鈥檚 commitment to nuclear as part of a future energy mix despite the price of renewables such as off-shore wind having 鈥渇allen dramatically, to the point where they now require very little public subsidy and will soon require none鈥�.
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