Hitachi confirms UK nuclear project purchase
Japanese electronics company Hitachi this morning confirmed it had bought Horizon Nuclear Power from RWE and E.ON to build two nuclear plants in Anglesey and Gloucestershire.
The contract involves building between two and three 1,300 MW plants in Wylfa, Anglesey, and Oldbury in Gloucestershire. The first unit will become operational in the first half of the 2020s.
Hitachi estimates that up to 6,000 jobs will be created at each site. British companies Rolls-Royce and Babcock have also won contracts to help Hitachi deliver the programme.
Horizon, which was formed in 2009 by German utility companies E.ON and RWE, was designed to pursue the construction of new nuclear power stations in the UK.
The transaction is due to complete at the end of November.
George Borovas, head of nuclear projects at law firm Pillsbury, said today: “This investment by Hitachi is a significant, positive development and can been viewed as a vote of confidence in the UK nuclear programme.
“The British government has invested in its relationships with a number of Asian countries, including Japan, and had the vision to seek and welcome their investment.”