§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the President of the Board of Trade how many applications he has received for import licences for spent nuclear fuel shipments destined for THORP between the present time and 1 November.
§ Mr. EggarAll shipments of spent fuel for reprocessing at THORP are made in accordance with the provisions of the Import of Goods (Control) Order 1954. Unless the spent fuel is consigned from the European Community a licence is required. The number of shipments to take place between the present time and 1 November is a matter for the company concerned.
§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the President of the Board of Trade, further to his statement on Monday 28 June, 615W Official Report, column 691, on what evidence he based the figure of £5 billion as the amount of compensation which might be payable in respect of failure to operate THORP.
§ Mr. Eggar[holding answer 8 July 1993]Whether any money would need to be paid to customers if THORP did not operate, and if so how much, would depend on the circumstances. including those arising in the event of any breach of contract. British Nuclear Fuels plc has advised me that its legal advice is that the contracts in question are very robust.
BNFL has also advised me that the figure of £5 billion in question is the sum of the company's assessment of the economic detriment to the United Kingdom of abandoning THORP about—£1 billion—plus a further £4 billion, being an approximate estimate of the total amount already invested by overseas customers in THORP reprocessing—taking account of transport costs, interest and exchange rate movements.
If any customer were to make a claim against BNFL, it would be for the company to decide how to respond. In the absence of agreement, how much—if anything—would be payable would be determined in the courts in the light of the specific circumstances.