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German election blow for nuclear privatisation
29 September 1998
British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) will almost certainly lose its second largest foreign client for its flagship Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant (THORP) as a result of the German national elections.
The Social Democratic Party and the Green Party - who seem set to become partners in Government -are commited to stopping new contracts for THORP, and that there will be strong pressure for German utilities to renegotiate the existing 'base-load' contracts. And even if the Red/Green coalition doesn't materialise, a Grand coalition between the SPD and the Christian Democratic Party (CDU)will almost certainly mean that there will be no new contracts for THORP [1].
The blow comes at the worst time for BNFL. The already shakey financial case for reprocessing is likely to be exposed by the Government commissioning of KPMG to examine BNFL's finances, with a view to possible privatisation [2].
*The credibility of the commerical case for reprocessing has been undermined by revelations that a secret Touche Ross report on which THORP's claim to commerical viability rests never actually existed.
*The UK Government's decision against a proposed nuclear dumpsite, the OSPAR international agreement that the UK must 'subtantially' cut its radioactive discharges by 2000,and the poor throughput of its THORP plant have made it possible that BNFL may be losing as much as 100 million a year from reprocessing [3].
Dr Dominick Jenkins, Nuclear Campaigner at Friends of the Earth said:
"The likely loss of the second largest foreign client for its THORP reprocessing plant is a wake up call for British Nuclear Fuels. If it is to have a commerical future BNFL has to stop reprocessing or face extinction.
[2] Nicholas Watt and Jamie Wilson, 'Nuclear fuel sell-off in the pipeline,' Guardian, (25/9/8)
[3] Mike Sadnicki, Future Thorp Available Cash Flows, (Nuclear Free Local Authorities, 1988)
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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust
Last modified: Jul 2008
