Hinkley Point B reaches defuelling milestone with removal of nuclear fuel from its first reactor

The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) has overseen the completion of defuelling Reactor 4 at Hinkley Point B power station.

EDF, which operates the site, has also announced that alternative saltmarsh locations are now being sought for Hinkley Point C following a public consultation earlier this year.

Hinkley Point B power station, situated near Bridgwater, Somerset, generated electricity from 1976 until 2022. The process of defuelling the power station is currently under way. A key milestone in this process has now been reached with Reactor 4’s defuelling.

This ONR will also oversee similar work about to begin on defuelling Reactor 3.

“Defuelling is the process of safely removing the spent nuclear fuel from the reactors, which removes the vast majority of the radioactive hazard,” said Mike Webb, the ONR’s head of operating reactors sub-division.

The fuel removed from the reactors will be transported by rail to Sellafield in Cumbria for storage.

The ONR says that once the power station is fuel-free, the nuclear site licence will then be transferred to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority for its subsidiary Nuclear Restoration Services to carry out decommissioning work.

Webb said: ““We will continue to effectively and efficiently regulate the Hinkley Point B site throughout the entire defuelling and decommissioning phase to ensure the licensee complies with all regulations to safeguard workers and the public.”

The ONR has also received an application from EDF to decommission Hinkley Point B.

EDF HPC Environment

Meanwhile, EDF has also made an announcement about the under-construction Hinkley Point C – the UK’s first new nuclear plant in a generation – which is on the same site.

In January 2024, EDF announced plans to create more than 800 acres of saltmarsh on the River Parrett, near Bridgwater, as part of the wider environmental mitigation to help wildlife and the environment around the Severn estuary.

However, having held a public consultation in January and February 2024, in which local residents and environmental campaigners hit back at the proposed plans, EDF has now announced it will seek alternative locations for the saltmarsh.

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EDF said the proposed saltmarsh would create new habitat for fish and animals, improve local water quality and reduce the risk of localised flooding.

It states that it is obliged to make environmental improvements like a saltmarsh to compensate for the “very small impact the power station will have on fish numbers when operational”.

Andrew Cockcroft, head of stakeholder relations at Hinkley Point C, said: “We have listened carefully to concerns and suggestions made during our consultation and are now exploring changes to our proposals.

“Hinkley Point C is one of Britain’s biggest acts in the fight against climate change and its operation will provide significant benefits for the environment. The development of saltmarsh habitat will boost this further – helping support fish populations and minimise the small environmental impact of operating the new power station.”

EDF says that details of the sites under investigation will be shared after relevant stakeholders have been informed. A public consultation will then follow before any new proposals are submitted.