Survey finds 62% would not be happy living near the small modular reactors backed by government and industry

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Most Britons would not be happy living near the mini nuclear power stations that Rolls-Royce and several other international companies want to build in the UK, a survey has found.

The government has promised the developers of small modular reactors a slice of a £250m funding pot in a race to position the UK as the place where the first generation of the power stations should be built.

Polling by YouGov, however, believed to be the first survey of public attitudes towards the plants, found that 62% of people would be unhappy living within five miles of one.

The poll, commissioned by the climate change charity 10:10, found that only 24% would be unhappy living near an onshore windfarm, which the Conservative party has stymied with tougher planning rules. The figure fell to 17% for community-owned windfarms.



Ellie Roberts, a campaigner at 10:10, said: “These results show just how wildly out of step with public opinion UK energy policy has become.”

Most small modular reactors (SMRs) would generate less than a tenth of the power the projected Hinkley Point C will provide, but are backed by industry as a cheaper option to big nuclear plants and an opportunity for British firms to be first in a new technology.

The government’s multimillion-pound competition to help build the first one in the UK has, however, been repeatedly delayed. Ministers are expected to lay out their intentions later this autumn.

Rolls-Royce, Britain’s leading multinational manufacturer, last week added to pressure on the government to give industry clarity on its plans for the mini nuclear power stations.

Harry Holt, the president of nuclear at Rolls-Royce, said: “With demand for energy set to rise in the near future, in part due to the growing popularity of electric cars, we believe that a UK SMR programme is a vital addition to our national infrastructure.”

The company predicted that once the reactor had been built, future ones could at some point after 2028 be built for a subsidy price of £60 per megawatt hour of power they supplied.

Offshore windfarms to be built in 2022-23 recently secured a price of £57.50 per megawatt hour, a record low in the level of state support they require.