Consumers may foot nuclear bill (UK)

[jpak]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/jan/07/nuclearpower.alternativeenergy

Consumers may face higher electricity bills to cover the future decommissioning costs of a new generation of nuclear power stations to be announced this week, the Guardian has learned.

Ministers have met several electricity firms known to be interested in building up to 10 new stations and they are understood to have demanded long term commitments to guarantee their investments - expected to be about £10bn a station.

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Despite government assurances that the public sector would not be asked to pay for the new reactors, this also raises the prospect that if the fund did not cover the full decommissioning costs, the shortfall - which could run into billions - would be paid by the taxpayer.

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The taxpayer will also foot the bill of nearly £1bn to compensate the community eventually chosen to host the permanent nuclear waste repository, as well as the cost of security at potential sites, the transport of waste and the extra cost of any required increase in the size of transmission lines for the national grid.

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