(Sizewell / UK) – Northern Irish bus manufacturer Wrightbus has signed a contract with the operator of the future Sizewell C nuclear power plant. Initially, four “Streetdeck Hydroliner” vehicles have been ordered. The aim was to test whether they would be suitable for transporting thousands of workers to and from the construction site of the planned new reactor near Leiston, Suffolk.
The four double-decker buses are expected to be delivered in early 2024. If the pilot project is successful, Sizewell C will order up to 150 buses, creating one of the largest hydrogen bus fleets in the world, the companies said.
The 3,2 gigawatt Sizewell C system aims to help pave the way for the use of hydrogen-powered devices on large construction sites. The project is part of a consortium led by Wrightbus sister company Ryze, which has received more than £3,47 million (€XNUMX million) in government funding to test a mobile hydrogen refueling system.
Low carbon fuel market
“Once operational, Sizewell C will be one of the largest generators of low-carbon electricity in the country,” says Julia Pyke, Joint Managing Director of Sizewell C. “A hydrogen fleet will reduce our carbon emissions and reduce the impact of workforce transport on local communities . At the same time, I am pleased that we will potentially initiate a market for this important low carbon fuel in the East of England.”
The Sizewell A nuclear power station, owned by Magnox Electric Ltd., is already located near Leiston. operated and shut down in 2006 after 40 years, and British Energy's Sizewell B, which is expected to generate electricity until 2035.
The British NNB Generation Company Ltd., a subsidiary of the French utility EDF Energy, is now to build and operate Sizewell C and is also building “Hinkley Point C” near Bristol. According to media reports, the construction costs for Hinkley Point have increased from 2015 billion euros to up to 21 billion euros since construction began in 38. Sizewell C is estimated to cost £20 billion (€23 billion) and take 17 years to build.
Graphical representation of the planned Sizewell C reactor site (two blocks, right) on the east coast of England; Sizewell B (centre) is still in operation, Sizewell A (left) was decommissioned in 2006. © gov.uk
A report from the Berliners "daily newspaper" (taz), according to the British government, is bearing 50 percent of the costs incurred so far for Sizewell C. The rest should be covered by investors who, however, are holding back due to the high risk of investing in nuclear power, according to the paper. There is resistance to the project, not least because the location by the sea is considered to be at risk of corrosion. There are also concerns about the water supply in the dry area, which is surrounded by sensitive nature conservation regions.
“Westminster wastes huge amounts of money on inefficient energy solutions,” the taz quoted local politician Tom Daly as saying. Studies show that “continuous expansion of renewable energy by 2050 could exceed the government’s growth targets for nuclear power,” which the previous Boris Johnson administration had set at 24 gigawatts.
The companies said nothing about the ecological footprint of extracting and transporting the uranium necessary for operations, nor about the still unresolved issue of the final storage of spent radioactive fuel rods, which remains unresolved worldwide.
Photos
The H2 double-deckers from Wrightbus will one day transport workers to the construction site of the Sizewell C nuclear power plant. © Wrightbus
