North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has today questioned the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs over the frozen Horizon Nuclear Power Station Scheme on Anglesey.
Speaking in the Welsh Parliament this afternoon, Mr Isherwood asked the Minister what her “current understanding of developments is, in the context of their engagement with you.”
Hitachi (owner of Horizon Nuclear Power) announced in January that the Wylfa Newydd nuclear power station scheme on Anglesey was being postponed.
In August Mr Isherwood met Horizon’s Head of Stakeholder Communications for an update on Horizon’s work to resurrect the potential for development at the site, and was told that they were continuing to work with both the UK and Welsh Governments to develop the right conditions for the project to be restarted.
Raising the matter with the Minister, Mr Isherwood said:
“The draft National Development Framework says, in the context of Anglesey, 'The potential Wylfa Newydd nuclear power station development could provide significant employment, training and other associated economic benefits across the whole region if a decision is made to proceed with the scheme'.
“Well, when I met Horizon Nuclear Power - in my latest meeting with them - this summer, they told me the project was not dead, and that if planning and funding, including the strike price, stacked up, Hitachi actually would come back to the table, and things were quite buoyant and positive. But there would be about 18 to 24 months lead time for best-case scenario, and, crucially, they were continuing to work with both the Welsh and UK Governments to try to develop the right conditions to restore the project. Notwithstanding things being delayed at the Westminster end, what is your current understanding of developments, in the context of their engagement with you?”
The Minister replied: “Well, we were obviously very disappointed the UK Government announced the delay to the granting of a Development Consent Order for Wylfa Newydd. Welsh Government is currently in the process of reviewing the Secretary of State's letter of 23 October, and we'll provide all detail that they requested from our end by the end of December”.
Speaking outside the Chamber, Mr Isherwood added: “Although the UK Business and Energy Secretary announced in October that she was deferring the decision on the Development Consent Order for Wylfa Newydd nuclear plant for six months to allow further information ‘in respect of environmental effects and other outstanding issues’ to be provided and considered, it was the Welsh Government which announced in December 2018 that it was ‘calling in plans’ to build Wylfa Newydd for further consideration of the project’s environmental effects and it was the Minister’s own department which wrote to Anglesey Council with their decision”.