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New Build in the UK
Strengths
- Strong political and public support
- Strong potential supply chain if considering companies such as RR
- EPR has been licensed
- Licensing seems to be quick (4 years)
- PWR – materials expertise quite strong
- Structural integrity
- Fuel cycle infrastructure
- UK NAMRC
- Regulatory service
Weaknesses
- No domestic reactor design
- No MTR/Research Reactor (JHR ceiling 2% access)
- Very particular licensing compared to other countries
- Limited expertise in running LWR’s
- People have retired who where involved in making ‘shift’ from AGR to PWR
- Very limited expertise in water chemistry in UK
- Skill base a problem in general
Opportunities/Grand Challenges
- Universities can widen capability base for supply chain
- Revitalise manufacturing/engineering in UK with opportunities for export
- Many new jobs in industries and universities
- Limited (no) pre-history and ownership means we can have different types of Gen III – Diversity
- Manufacturing related research groups could get involved in nuclear
Threats
- Still no agreement on new build
- Some potential supply chain is falling away because of delay
- All technology might get imparted
- Is UK competitive enough and capable?
- Losing public support
- Final location of waste still not found
- Failure to deliver to time and costs
- Too expensive – failure to get costs down
- Lower C-tax
- Shell gas –fracking
