Nuclear energy plan unveiled by UK and US, promising thousands of jobs

The United Kingdom and the United States should sign a historic agreement to accelerate the development of nuclear energy.

This decision is expected to generate thousands of jobs and strengthen the energy security of Great Britain.

It is expected to be signed during the state’s visit to the American president Donald Trump this week, the two parties hoping that this will unlock billions of private investments.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the two nations “built a nuclear golden age” which would put them at the “point of global innovation”.

The government has said that the generation of more energy from nuclear power can reduce household energy bills, create jobs, stimulate energy security and fight climate change.

The new agreement, known as the Atlantic Partnership for Advanced Nuclear Energy, aims to allow companies to build new nuclear power plants in the United Kingdom and the United States.

It will rationalize regulatory approvals, reducing the average license period for nuclear projects up to four years to only two.

The agreement also aims to increase commercial partnerships between British and American companies, with a number of transactions that should be announced.

Plans are a proposal from the American company of the X-Energy nuclear group and the British energy company Centrica to build up to 12 advanced modular nuclear reactors in Hartlepool, with the potential to supply 1.5 million houses and create up to 2,500 jobs.

The wider program could be worth up to 40 billion pounds sterling, with 12 billion pounds sterling focused in the northeast of England.

Other plans include multinational companies such as Last Energy and DP World working together on a microcotal reactor at London Gateway Port. This is supported by 80 million pounds of private investment.

Elsewhere, Holtec, EDF and Tricax also plan to reuse the old Cottam coal factory in Nottinghamshire in a nuclear propulsion data center.

This project is estimated at 11 billion pounds sterling and could create thousands of highly qualified construction jobs, as well as permanent jobs in long -term operations.

Beyond electricity production, the new partnership includes collaboration on research on fusion energy and the end of dependence in the United Kingdom and the United States with regard to Russian nuclear materials by 2028.

Commenting on the agreement, the energy secretary, Ed Miliband, said: “Nuclear will feed our homes with clean and local energy and the private sector builds it in Great Britain, offering well-paid growth and jobs well paid for workers.”

And the Secretary in the United States of Energy, Chris Wright, described this decision as a “nuclear rebirth”, claiming that it would improve energy security and respond to increasing global power requests, in particular from AI and data infrastructure.

Sir Keir previously said he wanted the United Kingdom to be “one of the world’s world leaders”.

In the 1990s, nuclear energy generated around 25% of the United Kingdom electricity, but this figure fell to around 15%, without any powerful new central central since then and many aging reactors in the country which should be put out of service during the next decade.

In November 2024, the United Kingdom and 30 other countries signed a global commitment to triple their nuclear capacity by 2050.

And earlier this year, the government announced an agreement with private investors to build the nuclear power plant Sizewell C in Suffolk.

Its nuclear program also includes the first small modular reactors in the United Kingdom (SMRS), which will be built by the British company Rolls Royce.