Ynys Môn MP Virginia Crosbie has visited the construction of the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station to be briefed on how important the project is to the North Wales economy.
Virginia went to the Somerset site as part of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Nuclear Energy to visit both the in-operation Hinkley B and the under construction Hinkley C.
To date, the £25 billion project by EDF has pumped £3.4 million into the North Wales economy through contracts with 21 companies.
There have also been opportunities for apprentices from North Wales to learn skills in the construction and nuclear industries.
When it is finished, Hinkley C will generate enough power to meet 7% of the UK’s energy needs.
Virginia met apprentices working on the site – one of the biggest construction projects in Europe that has supported 22,000 people, in employment across the UK.
“I was really pleased to see how Hinkley C is taking shape and to imagine such a huge building project coming to Anglesey at Wylfa in the near future now the UK Government has committed to new nuclear power,” said Virginia.
“This state-of-the-art power station will deliver clean, reliable energy for the UK in a few years’ time as well as building a new skills base, especially for our young, across the country.
“It is all part of a green energy mix and improved energy security in the decades to come and it fits snugly with my campaign for new nuclear on Ynys Môn.
“I had the chance to go to the top of the Hinkley B reactor and inside the partially built Hinkley C and I am excited this is something we can have on Anglesey.
“It was also good to meet apprentices from all over the country – including Siwan Griffith and Samuel Pollard from North Wales – and I was proud to hear the Hinkley B Station Director Mike Davies sing their praises.
“Thank you to the APPG and EDF for allowing myself and my colleagues to visit.”
Mike Davies added:
“It was wonderful to welcome Virginia to Hinkley Point B, the nation’s most productive nuclear power station, and give her the opportunity to stand on top of a functioning reactor.
“New nuclear development will be an essential part of the nation’s future energy mix – but it’s only possible because stations like Hinkley Point B have been effectively and reliably generating zero carbon electricity for decades.”
