Nuclear power 'unfairly subsidised', claims green group

A legal challenge to the alleged subsidisation of nuclear power plants could prevent future nuclear builds, which may concern counter terrorist check cleared workers in the sector.

UK environmental group Energy Fair has formally complaint to the European Commission that if nuclear plant operators were required to be properly insured against the risk of disaster, it would add between €0.14 and €2.36 to the price of a kWh of nuclear electricity, making it uncompetitive.

Other unfair subsidies identified by the group included the exemption of uranium from a tax on fuels used to generate electricity and the UK government's proposal to provide support for the disposal of nuclear waste.

Energy Fair's Dr Gerry Wolff asserted: "There is no justification of any kind for subsidising nuclear power.

"It is a mature technology that should be commercially viable without support."

A recent study commissioned by CITB-ConstructionSkills indicated that 17,000 security cleared construction workers would be required on the sites of the next generation of planned nuclear power plants in the UK.