§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what is his best assessment of the net present value of the seven advanced gas-cooled reactor nuclear plants which are earmarked for privatisation; [35172]
(2) what is his best estimate of the net present value of the Sizewell B nuclear plant; [35171]
(3) what assumptions are built into his assessment of the net present value of the nuclear plants earmarked for privatisation in regard to (a) reactor lifetimes, (b) average annual load factors, (c) future annual savings in operating costs, (d) future electricity prices, (e) the discount rate for operational cash streams and (f) the discount rates for liability cash streams. [35169]
§ Mr. EggarThese figures are not available. The prospectus and listing particulars, which it is intended will be issued in advance of the flotation of the company that will own the UK's AGR and PWR power stations, will contain the information needed by potential investors to form a judgement about the value of the business.
§ Mr. SmithTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what assessment he has made of the appropriateness of the 6 per cent. discount rate in the evaluation of the1222W back-end of the nuclear fuel cycle activities by the consultants KPMG in its report prepared for the nuclear review for his Department, at paragraph 3.4.3. [35165]
§ Mr. EggarThe 6 per cent. pre-tax is the rate specified by HM Treasury as an appropriate rate to be used for evaluating investment projects for organisations not operating in commercial markets. KPMG considered this at length and concluded that 6 per cent. was an appropriate rate in the medium-term for the purposes of this study.