§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the President of the Board of Trade, (1) pursuant to paragraph 8.21 of the nuclear review White Paper, Cm 2860, if he will estimate the extent to which sufficient funds will be(a) generated by the Magnox stations and (b) realised by the privatisation of the advanced gas-cooled reactors and pressurised water reactors to meet the cost of the liabilities which remain in the public sector; [30384]
(2) what is the undiscounted cost of the liabilities remaining in the public sector; and how those liabilities will be met; [30393]
(3) when the Magnox stations will exhaust their existing sources of funding including, income from generation and outstanding fossil fuel levy and cash and investments currently held on current assumptions and calculations; and when the Government expect to contribute to reprocessing waste management and decommissioning costs. [30385]
§ Mr. LangThe undiscounted cost of Magnox Electric plc's nuclear liabilities will be shown in the company's annual report and accounts, which I understand will be published shortly. The sources of funding of these liabilities were described in the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Industry and Energy to the hon. Member for Colchester, South and Maldon (Mr. Whittingdale) on 10 May 1996,Official Report, columns 294–96.
The timing and amount of funding of these liabilities by Magnox and the Government are dependent on a number of factors. These include the level of Magnox's future income, which is dependent on among other things, interest rates and electricity prices, the potential for further improvements in the understanding and control of decommissioning costs and other nuclear liabilities, and the benefits to be derived from the proposed integration of Magnox with British Nuclear Fuels plc.
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