THE Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, visited Hunterston B power station in North Ayrshire today (Thursday 16 April) to meet management and staff of the newly-combined forces of EDF Energy and British Energy.
Mr Miliband met Vincent de Rivaz, CEO of EDF Energy, which British Energy became part of in January this year, and Mark Gorry, station director at the Hunterston B nuclear site.
Joined by David O’Neill, leader of North Ayrshire Council, Alex Gallacher, Labour councillor and John Quigley, Scottish Secretary of Unite, Mr Miliband took in a tour of the plant and heard about the significant contribution Hunterston B makes to the local community, and about EDF Energy’s plans for the new company’s future in Scotland.
Mr Miliband said: “This announcement we made yesterday (April 15) is another important step towards a new generation of nuclear power stations. Nuclear power is part of the low carbon future for Britain. It also has the potential to offer thousands of jobs to the UK and multi-million pound opportunities to British businesses”.
The visit follows the announcement by Mr Miliband’s Government department naming the sites in England and Wales that have been nominated through the Strategic Siting Assessment for new nuclear build.
Despite owning and operating two nuclear power stations in Scotland (Hunterston B and Torness) neither of these sites were nominated because planning is devolved to the Scottish Government.
Mr De Rivaz said: “Being here at Hunterston B today and meeting the people behind the 30 years of successful generation, highlights the importance of this industry and its contribution to the local community in terms of highly skilled jobs and its low-carbon, reliable electricity supply to a million homes across Scotland.
“EDF Energy and British Energy share a strong commitment to Scotland and the UK and believe in the need for a diverse energy mix including nuclear and renewables and we are investing to achieve this.”
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Contact: Yvonne White
Phone: 01355 846283
Email: Yvonne.white@british-energy.com
