Moving forward: Artist’s impression of the proposed nuclear power station at the Wylfa site on Anglesey, North Wales.
Plans for a nuclear power station in North Wales look set to be revived almost four years after the project was shelved.
Jeremy Hunt said the Government had bought the Wylfa site on Anglesey and a second at Oldbury-on-Severn in south Gloucestershire from Hitachi for £160 million.
The Japanese company abandoned construction of the plant in Wylfa in September 2020, after having suspended the project the previous year due to increased costs.
But yesterday the Chancellor, who referred to the island by its Welsh language and constituency name, said: “Ynys Mon has a vital role in developing our nuclear ambitions.”
Ministers are also pressing ahead with plans for small modular reactors (SMR), and six companies, including Rolls-Royce, have bid to win the contract.
These will complement the Hinkley Point C nuclear power stations in Somerset and Sizewell C in Suffolk.
Virginia Crosbie, MP for Ynys Mon, said: “I couldn’t be more excited to hear those words spoken today by the Chancellor.
‘What it means is that we will have a new nuclear plant at Wylfa. Land ownership is the key to unlocking it and this has happened.
‘What a victory for Ynys Mon. Bright days lie ahead with huge investments and high-quality, well-paid jobs.’
Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, said: “This is a crucial moment for the future of nuclear energy in the UK and should mark the start of new projects at these sites.”
The all-party parliamentary group on nuclear energy last year described Wylfa as “the best site in Europe for large-scale nuclear energy”.
