Why the U.K. Is Pushing Nuclear Power as Others Waver

Even as some nations move away from nuclear power, the U.K. is forging ahead. Hinkley Point C, under construction in southwest England, will be Britain’s first new nuclear power station in about three decades and is its largest construction project ever. With a price tag that has soared to 22.5 billion pounds ($29 billion) -- necessitating an unusual repayment plan that saddles British ratepayers with extra costs for decades -- Hinkley Point is a high-stakes test of one way to cut down on the carbon emissions that contribute to climate change.

Nuclear power supplies about a fifth of the U.K.’s electricity, but most of the existing facilities are old and need to be shut down in the next decade. Hinkley Point’s two new reactors, which are being built by French utility Electricite de France SA in partnership with China General Nuclear Power Corp., are expected to satisfy about 7% of the the nation’s overall electricity demand, or enough for about 6 million homes. The British government says that by 2050, the U.K. will need to get 38% of its power from similar such low-carbon power sources that are more reliable than wind and solar. Greater use of nuclear power could be a key part of the country’s road map to becoming carbon neutral -- a net-zero emitter of carbon dioxide, the biggest contributor to global warming -- by mid-century.