Memorandum 93
Submission from the Nuclear Industry Association
(NIA)
The NIA is the trade association and information
and representative body for the civil nuclear industry in the
UK. It represents over 130 companies operating in all aspects
of the nuclear fuel cycle, including the operators of the nuclear
power stations, and those engaged in decommissioning, waste management
and nuclear liabilities management. Members also include nuclear
equipment suppliers, engineering and construction firms, nuclear
research organisations, and legal, financial and consultancy companies.
CAPABILITY OF
THE UK INDUSTRY
TO BUILD
NEW NUCLEAR
STATIONS
The NIA has conducted an extensive study on
the capability of the UK industry to deliver a programme of new
nuclear power stations. The study concludes that at present the
UK industry could itself construct 70% by value of a new pressurised
water reactor and if there was further investment this could rise
to 80%. The study specifically looked at PWRs but the result will
be much the same for a boiling water reactor and perhaps a little
higher for a Candu type reactor due to that reactor type's lack
of pressure vessel which is a key component of the others which
can not be manufactured in the UK.
Independent of the type of reactor constructed,
much of the engineering and construction work on a new nuclear
power plant is not directly nuclear related but is similar to
work being carried out by many companies on major projects throughout
the UK and worldwide. The UK has a large engineering capacity
in comparison to that which would be required for the construction
of new nuclear facilities. The NIA study concluded that a new
nuclear power station would require only 2-3% of the national
civil engineering capacity and 4-5% of the national capacity in
mechanical and electrical engineering.
If one was to assume a programme of new nuclear
build which consisted of 10 reactors on five sites built over
15-20 years then it is likely to generate 64,000 man-years of
work directly and 22,000 indirectly in the support sector in the
local communities where construction takes place. Generally the
skills resource is available in the UK but there are some specialist
areas where more effort needs to be made in training, in particular
in the area of safety and licensing. The NIA has long recommended
that industry and government agencies should work together to
increase training provision and counteract the decline in young
people entering the engineering, manufacturing and construction
industries. The UK has made good progress in the nuclear sector
over the last few years with the establishment of Cogent the sector
skills council for nuclear and the launch this year of the National
Skills Academy Nuclear. There has also been a large increase in
the number of nuclear courses available through colleges and universities.
The University of Manchester has established the Dalton Institute
to function as a centre of excellence for nuclear research and
training. The institute has jointly funded skills and training
with the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.
This submission has been written to conform
to the evidence request in terms of word limits and in not reproducing
previously circulated work however we will be happy to provide
copies of the full capability report on request.
TRAINING UK ENGINEERS
OR IMPORTING
SKILLS
The nuclear power industry is a global one and
the skills the industry need are sourced globally so the lack
of locally trained staff is not necessarily a barrier to further
development of the industry. However the UK is not alone in looking
to build new nuclear stations and so we will be competing for
these people in a global market place. While there is no guarantee
that home grown engineers will stay in the UK it does make it
more likely so having a sufficient supply of home grown engineers
is the best option. Having an established home market and close
association with international vendors would provide UK companies
with access to significant business opportunities worldwide which
will in turn make them more attractive places to work for home
grown engineers.
The UK nuclear workforce is a high average age
with a large proportion close to retirement so the need to train
and recruit more staff is urgent. There are also some specific
areas in which there are shortages now such as nuclear inspectors.
However it is the generally lower numbers of students studying
science, technology and engineering fields which is causing the
engineering labour market to be difficult. The government should
certainly be looking to take action to encourage more students
to study these fields as this would be beneficial not just to
the engineering sector but to the economy as a whole.
THE ROLE
OF ENGINEERS
Engineers are obviously key to the development
of the nuclear industry whether new nuclear power stations are
built or not as engineers are key to the safe operation and development
of existing stations and the decommissioning of former station.
While the four prospective reactor vendors are all based overseas
so the work done by engineers in designing the plant will not
be carried out in the UK some of those engineers are UK trained
and the implementation of the projects will be carried out here.
The construction of new nuclear stations will require engineers
from all disciplines as well as nuclear engineers.
ECONOMIC VIABILITY
We believe economic scenarios set out by the
Government are sensible and reasonable and support the widespread
view among electricity generating companies that nuclear power
is an economic option for electricity generation, and one in which
they would wish to invest. Those economic calculations that drive
investment and the investments themselves will be made by private
sector companies, not by Government. These companies will not
invest in an uneconomic generating technology and so it is the
ultimate test of the economic viability of nuclear energy.
Electricity prices have risen noticeably in
the recent past, in part driven by the global rise in gas prices.
This has had a severe impact on UK industrial, commercial and
domestic consumers, particularly those on low incomes. As the
cost of fuel is a small proportion of nuclear costs nuclear energy
is relatively insensitive to changes in the price of the raw uranium
fuel, and provides an element of cost stability in the generating
portfolio, which is helpful in keeping overall prices to consumers
low. This contrasts with gas-fired generation, where the cost
of raw gas can represent 60% or more of the total generating cost.
It has been shown that the overall generating cost of nuclear
energy is competitive with fossil-fired generation. Nuclear energy
will become even more competitive in the future if gas prices
rise further and the costs associated with carbon emissions begin
to play a larger role. Nuclear energy's low and predictable running
costs provide a valuable hedge against volatile fossil fuel prices.
THE OVERLAP
BETWEEN NUCLEAR
ENGINEERS IN
THE POWER
AND MILITARY
SECTORS
The reactors that power the UK's submarine fleet
are pressurised water reactors and operate on the same principles
as those in nuclear power stations. However the NIA only covers
the civil nuclear sector and so it is difficult to comment on
this point of the inquiry.
March 2008
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