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Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Business
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Ed Miliband's bet on mini nukes risks backfiring – unless he goes all in
Depending on who you ask, it's the breakthrough technology that will be key to net zero – or a risky, expensive folly. But now, Ed Miliband has placed his bet: Britain is backing mini nuclear power plants. On Tuesday, the Energy Secretary confirmed that the Government will provide billions of pounds towards the development of the country's first small modular reactors (SMRs) as part of a new 'golden age' for atomic energy. They will be designed by Derby-based Rolls-Royce, which emerged victorious from a two-year competition, and come online in the mid-2030s, providing crucial 'baseload' power to the grid. Each reactor will be able to power around 1m homes, one third of the output from a larger, Hinkley Point C-sized reactor. In effect, Mr Miliband is betting that smaller reactors will boost his net zero plans with smaller price tags and faster build times than big nuclear plants - with their size also meaning they can be built in locations much closer to people's homes. Yet with SMRs still to be proven, the key question is: can they actually deliver? Nuclear power has been staging something of a comeback in recent years, as countries including Britain and America endorse it as a way of significantly reducing the costs of the green energy transition. This is because having more 'firm' power on the grid from nuclear reduces the need for extra wind and solar farms, grid infrastructure and backup storage. But nuclear projects in the West have a patchy history, with schemes tending to bust through both their budgets and their construction schedules. Hinkley Point C, in Somerset, for example, was originally meant to cost £20bn – but the final figure may have ballooned to as much as £47bn by the time it is finished, including inflation. It will also have taken much longer to build than anyone had expected, with its original completion date in 2025 likely to be pushed back until the early 2030s. Mini nuclear plants are meant to solve both of these problems by reducing complexity and construction times. They would use the same proven light water reactor technology as large plants. But instead of building them on-site, large sections would be produced in factories and then transported to the site for final assembly – like a high-tech piece of Ikea furniture. Their smaller footprint should in theory bring other potential benefits too, such as more flexibility in where they can be built. In February, Sir Keir Starmer vowed to 'push past the Nimbys' and open up more sites to potential nuclear development, ripping up a previous policy that said only government-chosen sites were suitable. 'Because SMRs are a fraction of the size of a traditional nuclear power station, they can be built in many more locations, providing secure, home-grown energy for our traditional energy-intensive industries to state-of-the-art data centres,' says Sam Richards, of Britain Remade, a pro-growth campaign group. Under Boris Johnson, who was strongly supportive of SMRs, the government previously floated the idea that households could have money deducted from their energy bills if they lived near the football stadium-sized plants, in a bid to quell a backlash. Each Rolls-Royce SMR will generate about 470 megawatts (MW) of power, putting the plants at the larger end of the scale for mini reactors. By comparison, those proposed by rivals such as GE-Hitachi and Holtec International would generate about 300MW. This is far less than the much larger reactors used by under-construction plants such as Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C, which will both house two reactors with capacities of 1,600MW each. On a per-megawatt basis, the mini plants will also be more expensive. Because of their smaller size, the economic case for SMRs only stacks up if the Government ensures they are built at scale and the designs remain highly standardised, experts say. According to a 2024 report by the US Department of Energy, this means at least 50pc of the spending for each plant should be on the factory-made modules. 'The value proposition for SMRs centres around maximising design standardisation and factory production,' the report says. 'Without this, an SMR risks being a civil works construction project without the benefit of economies of scale.' Ministers will also have to be prepared to open up far more sites for SMR development. The first SMRs are likely to be built at either Wylfa, Anglesey, or Oldbury-on-Severn, Gloucestershire, both of which were acquired by the Government last year in a £160m deal, although that is yet to be confirmed. Other options that are already licenced include Bradwell in Essex, Moorside in Cumbria; and existing nuclear sites such as Heysham, Hartlepool and Torness. However, one industry insider suggests the Government should also consider former coal power plant sites and industrial estates that host factories. 'You need to have sites that are closer to population centres, places that cannot take larger plants, that is the sweet spot,' the insider adds. 'To get the efficiencies of scale, you also need to build a fleet. For 'Nth of a kind' costs you would eventually be aiming for, we are talking something like a minimum of six to eight reactors. 'If that happens, this could be a real breakthrough for the industry – but it has to happen at scale.' However, nuclear power still faces huge opposition from some quarters, with no guarantee that households across the country will welcome the prospect of a mini plant nearby. And many critics argue that there is no reason that SMRs should prove any different to larger plants. A project being developed by NuScale in the US, for example, saw multiple budget increases before it was eventually cancelled, while GE-Hitachi's proposed reactor in Ontario, Canada, was recently given an updated price tag of C$21bn. Rolls-Royce has previously said it expected its SMRs to cost between £2bn and £3bn each, but the first one is likely to be significantly more expensive. The Government has already budgeted £2.5bn of spending for the UK programme, up to 2029, before construction is expected to begin. 'Nuclear power is a white elephant and a terrible legacy to leave behind – for countless generations to clean up,' says Dale Vince, the tycoon behind Ecotricity and a Labour donor. 'With nuclear, it's always the same story; decades late, massively over budget and never meets the hype. 'We need more affordable energy – the wind and the sun are our fastest, cheapest, cleanest sources. We don't need new nuclear power stations. It makes no sense to spend vast sums of time and money on them.' Rolls-Royce argues that SMRs can provide 'a British solution to a global energy crisis'. The company is hoping to grab a slice of an expected £500bn market for mini reactors for Britain, generating thousands of skilled jobs and a stable source of work for domestic suppliers. The company has already secured a deal to build SMRs for the Czech government and is vying for business elsewhere in Europe, with the British Government's endorsement of the technology likely to be viewed as an important vote of confidence. At home, however, the biggest obstacle to the rollout of SMRs may ultimately be political, depending on how willing ministers are to reform the planning system and overhaul the approach to building nuclear plants. Currently, nuclear meets around 14pc of the UK's electricity needs. Under the Government's plans, this could rise – although the scale of the SMR programme has already been trimmed back from an expected two to three developers to just one. 'Now that Rolls-Royce has been selected, we need to rekindle the nuclear ambition of the 1950s and 60s, when Britain led the world in nuclear innovation,' says Richards, at Britain Remade. 'That means moving at pace and identifying sites immediately, cutting red tape, and ensuring SMRs don't face the same planning delays that have held back their gigawatt-scale cousins. 'If we get this right, SMRs can help power a new era of energy security, reindustrialisation, and net zero – delivered faster, cheaper and more widely than ever before.' It is a bet that Mr Miliband might just win – but only if he and his Cabinet colleagues are willing to go all in. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Business
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Healthcare firm Totally collapses but divisions sold
Former NHS 111 urgent care provider Totally (TLY.L) has collapsed into administration, but said a deal to sell its main divisions will see the 'uninterrupted provision' of all its services. Totally has shed about half its workforce since last year and around 100 jobs are being put at risk as part of the deal announced on Monday. The Derby-based healthcare firm – which lost the NHS 111 support contract in February this year – has appointed Ernst & Young partners Tim Vance and Sam Woodward as joint administrators after failing to secure bids or strategic investors for the entire firm. It said that following the appointment, the sale of its selective care and corporate wellbeing subsidiaries, as well as the urgent care division, was completed to rival PHL Group. 'This transaction sees the continued and uninterrupted provision of all services previously delivered by the group,' Totally said. Totally employed around 1,400 staff at the end of March 2024. By the time it appointed administrators at EY on Friday, it had some 750 employees following two rounds of redundancies. More than 600 of those have been immediately transferred to the new owners following the sale to PHL – meaning that some 100 roles are at risk of redundancy. Mr Vance said: 'We are pleased to have agreed the sale of Totally which safeguards critical frontline NHS services and includes the retention of over 600 jobs.' Totally added: 'PHL Group will make separate announcements shortly, including communication with the customers, suppliers and employees of the elective care and urgent care divisions, and the corporate wellbeing business, which are all continuing to provide all services as normal following the transaction.' The company's failure comes after a difficult past year, with the firm losing the NHS 111 contract worth £13 million and then revealing last month it was facing a potential medical negligence claim related to an incident in January 2018. At the time, it warned the size of the liability for the claim could be more than the £10 million claim limit on its insurance policy. It launched a strategic review to look at options, including the sale of subsidiaries 'receiving strategic investment or undertaking some other form of comparable corporate action'. Shares in the firm plummeted at the time. On June 6, it announced its intention to appoint administrators after the review had failed to see any 'solvent' offers for parent firm Totally and suspended its shares from trading on London's junior Aim market. PHL – the buyer of its trading divisions – was launched in 2009 and runs services in the UK and overseas, including integrated urgent care, urgent treatment centres, surgical insourcing, custody healthcare, ADHD services and general practice.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Automotive
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Rolls-Royce to build Britain's first mini nuclear reactors
Rolls-Royce will build the country's first mini nuclear power plants as part of a multibillion-pound effort to make Britain a world leader in the technology. The Derby-based engineering giant was on Tuesday confirmed as the sole winner of a design competition, beating rivals GE-Hitachi and Holtec International following a two-year selection process. It will now work with the Government on a programme to initially build three the first small modular reactors (SMRs) by the 2030s, with £2.5bn of funding pledged through 2029 and billions more expected beyond that once construction begins. Ministers said the decision showed they were 'backing Britain', with the majority of the supply chain expected to be based domestically. As a 'preferred' bidder, Rolls will now hold talks to negotiate a final contract with the Government. A location has yet to be announced but sites including Wylfa, in Anglesey, and Oldbury-on-Severn, in Gloucestershire, are among those being considered. Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary, said the scheme would boost energy security and create thousands of jobs, as part of a new 'golden age of nuclear' that has also seen the Government pledge £14bn of new funding to the construction of Sizewell C. Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, added: 'The UK is back where it belongs, taking the lead in the technologies of tomorrow with Rolls-Royce SMR as the preferred partner for this journey. 'We're backing Britain with Great British Energy - Nuclear's ambition to ensure 70pc of supply chain products are British built, delivering our plan for change through more jobs and putting more money in people's pockets.' SMRs would in theory be faster to build than larger nuclear plants, such as Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C, and come with smaller price tags – although they remain unproven commercially. Tuesday's announcement also confirmed cutbacks to the SMR programme, which The Telegraph previously revealed were being considered. The Government had earlier suggested that two or as many as three SMR manufacturers would be chosen to take designs forward, with nuclear industry insiders saying this would boost competition and ensure a 'backup' was available should the main winner run into trouble. But with the Treasury under pressure to find billions of pounds for other priorities such as the NHS and police forces, the scale of the programme now appears to have been trimmed back. Ministers also confirmed that Great British Nuclear, the quango set up to manage the new mini-nuclear programme, would be absorbed into Mr Miliband's publicly owned Great British Energy. Tufan Erginbilgic, chief executive of Rolls-Royce, said: 'This is a very significant milestone for our business. 'It is a vote of confidence in our unique nuclear capabilities, which will be recognised by governments around the world.' Rolls has also been selected by the Czech government to build some of Europe's first SMRs in a joint venture with state energy firm CEZ. The decision brings to a close a process that was first promised by George Osborne, the former chancellor, in 2015 but did not begin until 2023 under the previous Conservative government. Rolls was widely viewed as the frontrunner in the process and had already been awarded £210m of taxpayer support in 2021 towards the development costs of its SMR technology. But in the past year, ministers have faced calls from Rolls boss Erginbilgic to push forward more quickly to ensure Britain retains 'first mover advantage'. The global SMR market is projected to be worth up to £500bn by 2050, according to the International Energy Agency. Rolls is vying against companies including Westinghouse and GE-Hitachi to secure customers and set up supply chains. The company has long supplied the pressurised water reactors that power Royal Navy submarines but has more recently sought to develop SMRs and even smaller 'micro reactors' for commercial use as well. Its SMRs would be constructed from 'modules' that are built in factories and then transported to sites for assembly. The idea is meant to ensure that the plants can be produced efficiently at scale and more quickly than larger nuclear projects. As part of the SMR competition, the Government asked companies to explain how they would bring down costs over time. In the longer run, it is also hoped that the smaller price tags of SMRs will ensure they are more attractive to private investors, which have long viewed bigger plants as too expensive and risky to back without government support. Major technology companies including Google, Amazon and Facebook owner Meta are investing in potential SMR technologies, amid suggestions they could eventually be used to supply power-hungry data centres needed to develop artificial intelligence. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Job losses as urgent NHS call firm collapses
A healthcare firm, which provided urgent care services in NHS 111 call centres, has gone into administration with the loss of 100 jobs. Totally, which employed 1,400 people across several sites in the UK, including Stockton-on-Tees and Newcastle, said workers had lost their jobs across the group but did not confirm how many had been affected at each site. The company has been sold to PHL Group, another healthcare provider to the NHS - with the immediate transfer of 600 of its employees. Tim Vance, joint administrator at EY-Parthenon, said he was pleased that hundreds of jobs and "critical frontline NHS services" had been safeguarded by the sale. Derby-based Totally had been struggling since losing the NHS 111 support contract in February. Mr Vance said: "We are pleased to have agreed the sale of Totally plc which safeguards critical frontline NHS services and includes the retention of over 600 jobs." Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. NHS 111 offers new mental health service New NHS 111 call centre 'investment for future' Totally
South Wales Guardian
09-06-2025
- Business
- South Wales Guardian
Healthcare firm Totally collapses but divisions sold
The Derby-based healthcare firm – which lost the NHS 111 support contract in February this year – has appointed Ernst & Young partners Tim Vance and Sam Woodward as joint administrators after failing to secure bids or strategic investors for the entire firm. It said that following the appointment, the sale of its selective care and corporate wellbeing subsidiaries, as well as the urgent care division, was completed to rival PHL Group. 'This transaction sees the continued and uninterrupted provision of all services previously delivered by the group,' Totally said. Totally employed more than 1,400 employees, according to its 2023-2024 annual report. The group added: 'PHL Group will make separate announcements shortly, including communication with the customers, suppliers and employees of the elective care and urgent care divisions, and the corporate wellbeing business, which are all continuing to provide all services as normal following the transaction.' The company's failure comes after a difficult past year, with the firm losing the NHS 111 contract worth £13 million and then revealing last month it was facing a potential medical negligence claim related to an incident in January 2018. At the time, it warned the size of the liability for the claim could be more than the £10 million claim limit on its insurance policy. It launched a strategic review to look at options, including the sale of subsidiaries 'receiving strategic investment or undertaking some other form of comparable corporate action'. Shares in the firm plummeted at the time. On June 6, it announced its intention to appoint administrators after the review had failed to see any 'solvent' offers for parent firm Totally and suspended its shares from trading on London's junior Aim market. PHL – the buyer of its trading divisions – was launched in 2009 and runs services in the UK and overseas, including integrated urgent care, urgent treatment centres, surgical insourcing, custody healthcare, ADHD services and general practice.
