UK plans to overhaul nuclear regulation to speed up projects

The UK government said it would overhaul its nuclear power sector after a review criticised it for being too risk averse and favouring process over outcomes.

The UK’s energy department on March 13 said it would follow all 37 recommendations from an assessment of the nuclear industry conducted in 2025, including the need to boost incentives for regulators and operators.

The reforms would be implemented by the end of 2027, the government’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said, insisting the changes would not compromise safety or environmental protections.

The war in Iran and the subsequent upending of energy markets has highlighted the UK’s exposure to geopolitical shocks and global price swings. The country relies on gas for around a third of total energy needs and imports more than half of that supply.

Nuclear power is also key to Britain’s ambition to have a clean power grid by the end of the decade. The nation is increasingly relying on wind and solar to meet demand but needs back-up when output from those sources drops. 

“As the current Middle East conflict shows, we need to go further and faster to build the clean energy we need to get off volatile fossil fuel markets and deliver energy security for our country,” Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said in a statement. 

The government will quadruple the number of students in doctoral-level nuclear programs to 500 and support seven research programs with £65.6 million (S$111.3 million) of new funding, matched by industry, the government statement added. 

Still, despite the concerns about energy price shocks, the UK would not join the US in easing some sanctions on Russian oil, Energy Minister Michael Shanks told Sky News.

“The UK has been really clear that our sanctions on Russia stay in place,” he said. BLOOMBERG