Public opinion in Britain may be turning towards acceptance of a new nuclear power programme but the bureaucratic progress is slow and arduous. The original consultation has been judged to be very seriously flawed and so the public consultation period ensues bringing mixed results.

In an article by Roland Gribben of Britain’s Telegraph, page A6, Focus on Energy, a poll of over 1000 people had 46% in support of continued use of nuclear power. The article goes on to say that the government is anxious to bring back nuclear power into the energy equation to provide a more balanced portfolio and avoid heavier dependence on gas and other forms of energy. Bang on in our humble opinion.

Now if you reflect on any of the major projects that have been built in your area did you find that the budget was overrun and the schedule was overshot? Projects that spring to mind here are the new Wembley stadium and the new parliament building in Scotland, both managerial basket cases. The same goes for large nuclear projects they are fraught with opportunities for delay, hence the proliferation in claim resolution specialist consultants. Well this is the first article that we have come across that has raised the touchy subject of ‘timetable’ when it points out that by 2020 there will only be Sizewell B producing nuclear power. So Britain has about twelve years to say yes to a nuclear future, produce designs, procure equipment, appoint expert constructors, build and commission this new crop of plants. The construction of nuclear power plants has not been done in this country for almost a generation so the expertise is not available. Well right next door we have the French who are bang up to date with the latest in nuclear technology however everyone else will be calling on their services too. The shortage of skilled labour in this area is bound to impact on the proposed Engineering, procurement and construction schedules so the need to get to the starting gate is absolutely critical if Britain is to avoid a run a candles.

The British government is keen to see that the private sector provides the finance and not the taxpayer, do we have the time to pontificate we ask?

For good measure this article reminds us that the Chinese have plans for 88 out the proposed 223 new nuclear plant proposals, although we tend to think that China will announce more and more new proposals once it has tied up the supply of uranium. Yes uranium! One wonders just how much uranium has been secured to operate these plants in Britain; our guess would be on the low side, if any.

Have a good one.