Plans to build two next-generation nuclear reactors at Hinkley Point in southwest England are stalled at the crossroads of ambitions by Britain, China and French electricity giant EDF.
A consortium led by EDF (Electricite de France) is expected to make a final decision this year on whether to invest in the gigantic project, estimated to cost 25 billion pounds (USD 38.6 billion, 34 billion euros), which would be the first new nuclear power station in Britain in decades.
The decision could hinge on China's role in the consortium through its state-run firms China General Nuclear Corporation (CGN) and China National Nuclear Corporation.
London is looking to the visit this week of Chinese President Xi Jinping as an opportunity to finalise the deal for Hinkley Point, two years after it first gave the green light for the project.
Hinkley Point would feature the European Pressurised Reactor (EPR), a third-generation reactor design considered the most advanced and safest in the world.
Britain last month pledged 2 billion pounds for the nuclear plant, which it sees as necessary to meet the country's energy needs as older coal and nuclear plants are retired, and also as oil reserves decline in the North Sea.
The Chinese companies are expected to largely finance and get a stake of around 40 per cent in the nuclear plant that authorities hope will generate seven per cent of Britain's electricity.
"Britain is also hoping to revive its faded industrial sector and create high-paying jobs," said Christophe Bonnery, head of an association of energy economists.
Aiming for 25,000 new jobs, the British government hopes that the agreement on Hinkley Point will be the first of many, he added.
In all, around 10 reactors are envisioned to be built in Britain, all by foreign companies.
"The idea is to get the Chinese with this first reactor in the frame of mind to co-finance the others that follow," said Arnaud Leroi, of consultants Bain & Company.
China's booming nuclear industry wants to take advantage of the favourable attitude in Britain toward nuclear energy to establish credibility for its technology and assure it access to the international market, analysts say.
