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Reactors in the UK and the Future of Nuclear Power      Posted
on October 22nd, 2013 Helian 2 comments      A consortium led by
France’s EDF Energy, including Chinese investors, has agreed
with the government of the UK on terms for building a pair of
new nuclear reactors at Hinkley Point in the southwest of the
country, not far from Bristol.  If a final investment decision
is made some time next year, and the plants are actually built,
they will probably be big (about 1600 Megawatts) pressurized
water reactors (PWR’s) based on the French company Areva’s EPR
design.  These are supposed to be  (and probably are) safer,
more efficient, and more environmentally friendly than earlier
designs.  In general, I tend to be pro-nuclear.  I would
certainly feel a lot safer living next to a nuclear plant than a
coal plant.  However, I’m a bit ambivalent about these new
starts.  I think we could be a lot smarter in the way we
implement nuclear power programs.