§ Mr. SalmondTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what extension he has approved to the notional life of Scottish Nuclear's advanced gas-cooled reactor power stations; and what effect this extension will have on the annual provisions made by Scottish Nuclear to fund decommissioning and other nuclear liabilities.
§ Mr. StewartIt is the responsibility of Scottish Nuclear to take a view on the notional life of its power stations, and to satisfy the nuclear installations inspectorate regarding safety and other licensing requirements. The effect of the extension to the notional life of Torness power station is to increase the time over which the company make charges against revenue in order to accumulate the provisions necessary to meet future liabilities; this has the effect of reducing the annual charge.