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| 13TH - 19TH DECEMBER 2019 | UTILITY WEEK
Review of the year
Analysis
I
t will go down as a historic year for utilities – and the planet too.
It's been a year of landmark policy intervention, regulatory reset,
government upheaval and shock developments. And it also wit-
nessed the birth of a national climate change agenda that will shape
the UK's energy and water strategy not only over the new decade,
but for generations to come.
An abundance of standout features makes it hard to do justice
to one of the most critical 12 months ever for our industry. And
as I write this review, the year's signi• cance and repercussions
have still to play out, with the general election being held even
as we go to press. The only thing certain now is that whether
it's a victory for one of the main parties or a hung parliament,
the result will have profound and long-lasting rami• cations
for the sector and the country.
Yet it seems almost • tting that a year that came in with a
bang should leave the stage in the same way.
A year that
made history
As the rollercoaster ride that is 2019
draws to a close, Suzanne Heneghan
selects some of the top moments,
people and pronouncements of an
unforgettable year.
Nuclear fallout
The start of 2019 saw Hitachi suspend
plans to build new nuclear plants at
Wylfa and Oldbury, sparking fears about
the UK's future energy security and its
ability to achieve its targets on reducing
greenhouse gas emissions.
Wylfa, on Anglesey, was the furthest
advanced in the UK's nuclear new-build
planning pipeline a… er EDF's Hinkley
Point C power station, under construction
in Somerset.
It was the second blow for the UK's
nuclear programme in three months, fol-
lowing the axeing of Toshiba's plans for
a power station at Moorside, Cumbria.
Tim Yeo, former chair of the Energy and
Climate Change Committee and current
chair of New Nuclear Watch Europe, said
the suspension of work by Hitachi posed
an "existential threat" to the UK's nuclear
industry.
It is a debate that continues – with the
price of o" shore wind now way below the
cost of new nuclear, pro-nuclear play-
ers arguing the case for a diverse, well-
balanced energy mix, and a government
consultation under way about a new, reg-
ulated asset base funding model.
