UK regulators have granted design approval to Areva's Generation III reactor – a critical milestone in EDF's plans to build new units at Hinkley Point.
The UK Environment Agency and Office for Nuclear Regulation announced Thursday that the EPR meets the country's safety standards. According to an Areva release, their decision ends a four-year process recently prolonged by safety enhancements prompted by the Fukushima Daiichi accidents in Japan. The UK joins France, Finland and China in approving the design.
EDF, which is closely tied to Areva, plans to build two EPRs at Hinkley Point, and on Wednesday Areva announced it signed agreements with 25 UK companies to supply components for them. While the design certification moves the project closer to reality, construction still hinges on site licenses and negotiations over power price guarantees. Those are ongoing, and EDF recently pushed a final decision on investment at Hinkley into next year.