The monopoly money fantasy world of nuclear power economics seems to have suffered a big shock, with the report in The Guardian that the controversial Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant (THORP) at Sellafield has shutdown indefinately due to a huge leak of highly radioactive liquid, which will require the development of new robotic equipment and technologies in order to clean it up.
Safety of the public is not at issue, we are told, but the huge hole in the public purse certainly is.
Why is it that the NuLabour Government have tried to pay fo the costs of nuclear waste re-processing, from the alleged (in fact nonexistant) profits of THORP ?
"The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, a quango which took over ownership of the plant from British Nuclear Fuels on April 1, has a £2.2bn cleanup budget for this year, its first year of operation, of which £560m was to come from the Thorp plant."
This must have a huge effect on the viability of any new nuclear power station investments, and therefore a knock on effect on gas, oil and coal energy prices to the UK consumer as well.
Who really believes that the re-branding the Department of Trade and Industry as the Department for Productivity, Energy and Industry (no new website URL yet - so much for joined up electronic delivery of Government services) under Alan Johnson means that an actail Energy Policy that makes any sense will be a priority of this NuLabour government ?
It is very noticable that news of this leak, first suspected on April 19th, was not reported by the national media until after the election. although the local press have reported the incident, more from the effect on local jobs, but they do give more details e.g. that the leak involves 83 cubic metres of liquid
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