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EU chiefs clear Hinkley Point nuclear plant project

The first nuclear power station to be built in Britain for a generation was given the green light yesterday after the European Commission signed off the government’s subsidy plans.

The controversial £16 billion Hinkley Point C project is expected to generate its first energy by 2023.

Energy Secretary Ed Davey said it would produce less pollution than Britain’s current crop of power stations and will reduce household energy bills by £95 a year by 2030.

Unite the union welcomed the project that is set to create 25,000 jobs in construction, manufacturing and the operation of the site.

National officer Kevin Coyne said: “This fires the starting gun on a nuclear renaissance and will hopefully pave the way for more power stations which will, in turn, generate more skilled jobs.”

But the the government’s decision to give a £92 per megawatt hour subsidy — twice the market rate — to EDF had been slammed by energy experts and campaigners.

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