NFLA media release, 21 August 2023, For immediate use
For the sake of Suffolk, Nuclear Free Local Authorities urge Centrica to ‘Say Non toSizewell C’
The Chairs of the Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLA) Steering Committee and the NFLA English Forum
have written to the Chief Executive of Centrica, which owns British Gas, urging him ‘ for the sake of ourplanet, the people, fauna and flora of Suffolk, the wallets of your hard-pressed electricity customers, andyour own company bottom-line’ to say NON to Sizewell C.
The Times reported in July that Chief Executive Chris O’Shea was considering taking a stake in the project
and Councillors O’Neill and Blackburn in their letter point out the pitfalls of investment ‘which would bringwith it clear financial, ESG and reputational risks for Centrica ’.
EDF Energy, now wholly owned by the French state, is currently building a similar plant at Hinkley Point C
in Somerset – its history has not been a happy one with the project hugely behind schedule and massively
over budget. In addition, Sizewell C will utilise the same EPR reactor as Hinkley Point C, a reactor design
with a chequered safety and reliability record. A reactor in China was involved in an accident and is currently
again shutdown (Taishan-1) and in Finland a second one only came online after the operator was forced
to carry out repairs after a succession of equipment failures (Olkiluoto-3).
Sizewell C is also a site presenting unique challenges. It is located on the Suffolk Heritage Coast, facing theincreasing threat of storm surges and coastal erosion, and with climate change modelling suggesting itwould become inundated and isolated; there are several sites of scientific interest nearby; and the county
is under increasing water stress with fears that there will be insufficient fresh water to meet the needs ofthe plant as well as local people.
The Councillors point out that several prospective investors who manage large pension funds have clearly
indicated that ‘they will not be dipping their financial toe into the radioactive water’ of Sizewell C. Pension
managers at The People’s Pension; Nest; BT; BBC; Tesco; and Pearson have all, in correspondence seen
by campaigners at Stop Sizewell C, indicated they will not be backing Sizewell C, whilst the Daily Mailreported that Nat West and BT told the paper they would also not be investing and Legal and General’s
Nigel Wilson told the BBC’s Today programme: “ We are not big fans of HS2 and Sizewell C".
Councillor O’Neill believes this to be sage advice:“At a current projected cost of £32.7 billion, Hinkley Point C’s budget is fast approaching twice its firstestimate at the time of financial close, and there is no reason to believe that Sizewell C will be delivered
any more quickly or any more cheaply as the construction of large nuclear power plants in the UK is a litanyof projects being delivered late and vastly over budget”.
Councillor David Blackburn, Chair of the NFLAs English Forum, is a co-signatory to the letter. He is urging
opponents of the project to also contact Centrica to ask them not to invest:“It would be far wiser for Centrica to direct every available penny into the proven renewable technologies
that we already have now – these would generate power and heat far more quickly and more cheaply, andTHE LOCAL GOVERNMENT VOICE ON NUCLEAR & RENEWABLE ENERGY ISSUES
C/o NFLA Secretariat, Level 6, Town Hall Extension, Manchester, M60 3NY
Tel: 07583 097793 Email: Richard.outram@manchester.gov.uk Website: http://www.nuclearpolicy.info

generate for them a more immediate financial return, than any further investment in this monstrous nuclear
boondoggle.”“The NFLAs are pleased to back the campaign launched by Stop Sizewell C asking supporters to send anemail directly to Mr O’Shea asking him not to invest in Sizewell C.
“You can take this direct action in just a few clicks by going to the site
https://action.stopsizewellc.org/centrica Please sign this and share it with your family and friends.

at“For the sake of Suffolk, we do not need Sizewell C”.
Ends//… For more information, please contact NFLA Secretary Richard Outram by email
on richard.outram@manchester.gov.uk or mobile 07583097793
This news release can also be found on the NFLA website athttps://www.nuclearpolicy.info/news/for-the-sake-of-suffolk-nuclear-free-local-authorities-urge-centrica-to-say-nonto-sizewell-c/
Notes to Editors
The letter to Mr O’Shea sent today by email reads:
Mr Chris O’Shea, CEO Centrica

Monday 21st August 2023

(Copied to Investor Relations, Centrica)
Dear Mr O’Shea,
Please say NON to Sizewell C!
We are writing to you as Chair of the UK/Ireland Nuclear Free Local Authorities and Chair of the NFLAs English Forumto urge you not to invest money in taking a stake for Centrica in the controversial Sizewell C nuclear power plant
project in Suffolk.
It was reported in The Times of 22 July 2023 that such an investment is under consideration:(Mr) 'O’Shea also has floated the idea of investment in EDF’s Sizewell C nuclear project, though [Martin] Young [ofInvestec] cautions that EDF “haven’t exactly covered themselves in glory in terms of their ability to deliver on timeand on budget”’.
This is putting it mildly. Young was here clearly primarily referring to Hinkley Point C, Sizewell C’s predecessor, which
is being built by EDF Energy in Somerset.
This will be delivered late and vastly over budget.
In February 2023, EDF Energy announced that the first reactor will be available in June 2027, and the second one
year later, but with the caveat there is a ‘rising risk’ of an additional 15-month delay, and the cost of the project atcurrent prices amounts to at least £32.7 billion, fast approaching twice the original budget at the point of the Financial
Investment Decision of £18 billion.

THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT VOICE ON NUCLEAR & RENEWABLE ENERGY ISSUES
C/o NFLA Secretariat, Level 6, Town Hall Extension, Manchester, M60 3NY
Tel: 07583 097793 Email: Richard.outram@manchester.gov.uk Website: http://www.nuclearpolicy.info

There is no reason to believe that Sizewell C will be delivered any more quickly or any more cheaply as the constructionof large nuclear power plants in the UK is a litany of projects being delivered late and vastly over budget.
Like Hinkley Point C, Sizewell C will be reliant upon an EDF-designed European / Evolutionary Power Reactor which
has a poor track record for safety and reliability.
The first such installation at Taishan-1, China suffered an accident emitting radioactive gas in the summer of 2021
and was shut down for over one year. After coming back online in August 2022, the reactor was again shutdown fromJanuary of this year for reasons that are still not fully understood.
A further installation at Olkiluoto-3, Finland only came online in 2022, after 17 years, and then suffered a rapid
succession of parts failures which lasted for over a year curtailing power generation. In April of this year, after multiple
repairs, it finally again came back online, but power output was reduced after only one month, as the cost ofgeneration was uncompetitive compared to the power that was available from hydroelectric plants.
The Sizewell C site is in an area of outstanding natural beauty, being located on the Suffolk heritage coast, withhabitats of scientific importance on its doorstep, particularly of birdlife. The Suffolk coast is subject to storm surges
and coastal erosion, with climate change likely to increase the frequency and intensity over time, and models showthat the Sizewell C site will be inundated and isolated in coming decades.
It is also located in a county suffering increasingly from water stress and there are real fears that the demands placedby the plant upon the supply of potable water will jeopardise that available to the local populace. Sizewell C will also
be water-cooled sucking in vast amounts of seawater which will have a hugely negative impact upon the marine
environment.
Finally, as we have seen in Ukraine, nuclear power plants also represent a huge potential target for any hostile power,with Russia having previously threatened to swamp Britain’s coastline with a nuclear weapon generated tsunami.
In summary then, investment in Sizewell C would bring with it clear financial, ESG and reputational risks for Centrica.
Many other pension investors have already indicated, in correspondence seen by campaigners at Stop Sizewell C
which were probably responses to letters that read rather like this one, why they will not be dipping their financial
toe into the radioactive water:
People's Pension - "Direct investment into nuclear power infrastructure projects is not part of The People's Pension'sinvestment strategy and we will not be investing directly into Sizewell C."

NEST - "Nest has not invested directly into nuclear infrastructure and we have no plans to in the foreseeable

future."BT - "I am happy to inform you that we have no investment or exposure to Sizewell C, nor do we plan to in thefuture."

BBC - “The (pension) Scheme does not exclude the possibility of making nuclear-related investments, but currently

has no plans to make any direct equity investment in Sizewell C.”

Tesco - "We can confirm that the Scheme has no investments in EDF (who are the parent company for Sizewell C)

and has no immediate plans to invest in the company."

Pearson – “I can advise that the Trustees of the Plan have not considered investing directly in the Sizewell Nuclear

Plant and have no plans to do so going forward.”

THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT VOICE ON NUCLEAR & RENEWABLE ENERGY ISSUES
C/o NFLA Secretariat, Level 6, Town Hall Extension, Manchester, M60 3NY
Tel: 07583 097793 Email: Richard.outram@manchester.gov.uk Website: http://www.nuclearpolicy.info

And, in addition, from the media:
NatWest – as reported in Daily Mail of 31 Jan 2023 https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article11697759/Two-UK-pension-funds-snub-Sizewell-C-nuclear-plant-plan.html
Legal and General - Nigel Wilson said "We are not big fans of HS2 and Sizewell C" on the BBC Radio 4 Today
programme November 2022
So, there you have it. Sage advice from some of the leaders in the pension investment markets.
Sizewell C is not the solution to our climate emergency or our cost-of-living crisis. It would come on stream far toolate to arrest the inexorable rise of temperature, and it would represent further financial pain for hard -pressedhouseholds as a nuclear levy would be added to every electric consumer’s bill.
It would be far wiser for Centrica to invest every available penny into the proven renewable technologies that wealready have now – these would generate power and heat far more quickly and more cheaply, and generate for youa more immediate financial return, than any further investment in this monstrous nuclear boondoggle.
Therefore, for the sake of our planet, the people, fauna and flora of Suffolk, the wallets of your hard-pressed electricity
customers, and your own company bottom-line, we are asking you to write back to us to confirm that you will say
NON to EDF Energy and not invest in Sizewell C.
Thank you for considering this letter. Please respond in the first instance to our NFLA Secretary Richard Outram byemail to richard.outram@manchester.gov.uk
Yours sincerely,
Councillor Lawrence O’Neill,Chair, UK/Ireland Nuclear Free Local Authorities
Councillor David Blackburn,Chair, NFLA English Forum

THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT VOICE ON NUCLEAR & RENEWABLE ENERGY ISSUES
C/o NFLA Secretariat, Level 6, Town Hall Extension, Manchester, M60 3NY
Tel: 07583 097793 Email: Richard.outram@manchester.gov.uk Website: http://www.nuclearpolicy.info