EDF Energy has admitted that projected completion costs for its Hinkley Point C nuclear plant have risen again and the risk of delay has increased.
A review undertaken over the summer found that the first unit of the project was likely to be 15 months late, while unit two is expected to be deferred by nine months.
Meanwhile, the most recent revisions to project costs indicate it is likely to be between £21.5 billion and £22.5 billion – an increase up to £2.9 billion on the previous estimate. EDF said the range of costs depended on the effectiveness of action plans to be delivered in partnership with contractors.
It said cost increases reflected “challenging ground conditions which made earthworks more expensive than anticipated, revised action plan targets and extra costs needed to implement the completed functional design”.
EDF’s project rate of return for Hinkley Point C is now estimated between 7.6% and 7.8%.
Paul Spence, EDF’s director of corporate and regulatory affairs told Radio 4’s Today programme: “We’ve given the best view we can, given what we know. I can’t say today what will happen over the course of the construction.”