Sizewell C legal challenge dampens investment launch

Anti-Sizewell C campaigners have been granted permission to take their judicial review application to the Court of Appeal after it was initially thrown out by the High Court.

The news comes on the same day that the government fired the starting gun on its private equity round to raise capital for the nuclear plant.

Court of Appeal judge Lord Justice Coulson has ruled that Together Against Sizewell C (TASC) should have permission to appeal against Mr Justice Holgate’s refusal in the High Court of the campaign’s judicial review of then business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng’s decision to give development consent to the 3.2GW power station.

The judge said that as Kwarteng gave permission for the power station against his own planning inspector’s recommendation, the appeal had “a real prospect of success”.

Another factor in the judge’s ruling was TASC’s arguments that the nuclear power station will require its own permanent water supply for cooling.

TASC has argued that the environmental impact of a desalination plant, which it argues will be needed to guarantee a permanent water supply of 2.2 million litres per day for Sizewell C, was not included in the planning application for the nuclear power plant and therefore was neither assessed nor taken into account by the business secretary.

Paul Collins, chair of Stop Sizewell C, said: “Despite this legal challenge, it is clear that ministers have now ploughed over a billion pounds of taxpayers’ cash into this risky, damaging project. This flow of funding into Sizewell C should cease until our appeal against the lawfulness of the secretary of state’s decision is resolved.”

The news of the appeal has emerged on the same day that energy security and net zero secretary of state Claire Coutinho has confirmed the next stage for the investment process for Sizewell by opening applications for would-be partners to register their interest in taking part project.

The government, the Sizewell C Company, and EDF are looking for companies with substantial experience delivering major infrastructure projects to invest.

Potential investment partners are being asked to complete a pre-qualification assessment in which they will have to demonstrate that they meet the key criteria for entering negotiations on a potential equity stake in Sizewell C, the government has said. Any investment will also be subject to strict national security checks,

Coutinho said: “We are focused on securing good value for taxpayers and look forward to seeing strong and competitive bids to be a part of this exciting project.”

Julia Pyke, joint managing director of the Sizewell C Company, said there had been a “positive response” from investors during the market testing carried out ahead of today’s announcement.

Tom Greatrex, chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, added: “The capital raise is vital to delivering the project, which will ultimately ensure we have better energy security and enough clean power to meet future demand. Sizewell C will be one of the world’s greatest low-carbon assets, helping the UK significantly cut reliance on gas and creating thousands of highly-skilled jobs across the country.”

The government has already invested a £700 million stake in the project – the first such direct public investment in a nuclear project for a generation.

Ministers have also made £511 million available to continue project development and prepare the Suffolk site for construction, ahead of the planned private equity raise for the project, including £341 million announced at the end of last month.