New UK nukes could hit $42 billion

The Hinkley Point C two-reactor nuclear power plant under construction in the UK could top $42 billion before completion according to the latest estimates. It is majority owned by the French government utility, EDF, already responsible for a loss of confidence in the nuclear investment sector with its similarly over-budget and behind schedule debacles in France and Finland. This most recent price surge at Hinkley Point C represents a 20% increase in costs over the original estimates. These cumulative scandals have led to France enduring power prices on the European Energy Exchange for the first quarter of 2024 that were more than twice as high as in Germany, whose solar energy sector has just received a significant boost after the shutdown of Germany’s last three nuclear reactors.