More delays for EDF's Hinkley Point C nuclear plant

EDF's Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant in the UK has been delayed again and has incurred an increase in costs.

EDF expected the start of electricity production to be June 2027, however, the project has been delayed and is expected to be operational between 2029 and 2031.

"This schedule is based on a target productivity for the electromechanical work, which action plans are being drawn up to achieve," the group said in a statement.

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Hinkley Point C managing director Stuart Crooks explained that "fifteen months of the delay was due to the global pandemic..."

Crooks added, "So beyond COVID, we've lost nine months since we began..."

The cost for the completion of the project has also increased and is now estimated to be between £31 billion and £34 billion based on 2015 values.

In 2015 the project was estimated to cost between £25 billion and £26 billion. However, due to the cost of civil engineering and the longer duration of the electromechanical phase that amount has now been revised.

Nuclear is set to play an important role in the UK's road to energy transition, with the government unveiling The Civil Nuclear Roadmap.

The roadmap outlines targets and aims to secure investment decisions to deliver 3-7GW of nuclear power every five years from 2030 to 2044, which would be required to meet the ambition to deploy up to 24GW of nuclear power by 2050.

Hinkley Point C is the first nuclear power station to be built in the UK for more than 20 years and is set to provide zero-carbon electricity for around six million homes for an anticipated lifespan of sixty years.

The power plant is located in Somerset in the South West of England.