Office for Nuclear Regulation
The ONR is designed to function as a sector-specific regulator for the nuclear industry, with additional responsibility for the transport of radioactive material by road, rail and inland waterways. More detail on the ONR is available on the nuclear regulatory reform page.
The information available includes the text of the draft Legislative Reform Order (LRO) and the draft Explanatory Document which accompanies it.
The draft legislation is based on the proposals contained in the 2009 consultation document entitled Consultation on the Restructuring of the Health and Safety Executive’s Nuclear Directorate. This page contains the original consultation document, together with the Government response to the consultation and the full Impact Assessment.
Consultation on a Fixed Unit Price methodology and updated cost estimates
This consultation sets out:
- Changes to the Government’s policy framework for setting a Fixed Unit Price for the disposal of intermediate level waste and spent fuel as a result of feedback from stakeholders received during the pre-consultation.
- The main stages of the proposed methodology to determine a Fixed Unit Price and worked examples of how it would be calculated using this methodology.
- The Government’s updated estimates of the costs for decommissioning, waste management and waste disposal for new nuclear power stations.
View the details of the consultation and the documents.
Consultation on the financing of decommissioning and waste handling regulations
This is a consultation on the draft regulations that are derived from the Energy Act 2008. It is also a consultation on a draft Order to make certain matters associated with a Funded Decommissioning Programme designated technical matters.
The purpose of this consultation is to seek views on whether or not the proposals provide clarity for both operators and the public on the financing arrangements the operator of a new nuclear power station will have to put in place to meet the full costs of decommissioning and their full share of waste management costs.
View the details of the consultation and all the documents.
How to respond to the consultations
The two consultations will run until 18 June. Details of how to respond are set out in the consultation documents. Please use the response forms provided on each web page to structure your response to the questions.
Government Response to the Consultation on Draft Energy National Policy Statements
The consultation on the draft Energy National Policy Statements including the draft Nuclear National Policy Statement closed on 22 February. The consultation gave the public the opportunity to influence and comment on the draft energy NPSs at a national and local level. We are pleased that so many people and organisations have taken part and given their views on how future decisions on where we locate power plants will be made. We are currently considering these responses and will be publishing the Government response later this year.
The Office for Nuclear Development
The Office for Nuclear Development (OND) will act to enable investment in the UK from the earliest possible date and with no cap on the amount of new build.
We have followed through on these actions:
- We have published draft nuclear National Policy Statement on 9th November 2009 - a key plank in the new planning system - for consultation.
- We have legislated to ensure developers put money aside from day one for eventual clean up and
- We published the recommendations made by Dr. Tim Stone (Expert Chair of OND) on the nuclear regulatory environment on 16th November 2009. They are available on the Nuclear white paper 2008 web page.
And it is working - energy companies have committed to build up to 16GW of new nuclear.
- EDF purchased British Energy and all its assets for £12.5 bn, including the Government’s 36% stake in January 2009 which includes 10 sites in the UK. . EDF now operate the existing fleet of nuclear power stations and they have publicly made their clear their intention to build 6.4 GW of new nuclear.
- The Nuclear Decommissioning Agency (NDA) has sold sites at Wylfa, Bradwell, Oldbury and Sellafield that has enabled new operators to participate in the new build programme.
- RWE/E.ON intend to build at least 6GW of new nuclear capacity at sites they have purchased at Wylfa and Oldbury.
A consortium of GDF SUEZ SA, Iberdrola SA and Scottish and Southern Energy Plc has set out plans to build up to 3.6 gigawatts of new nuclear capacity at a site they have purchased at Sellafield separately as part of a programme of asset disposals the NDA has arranged.
In addition to facilitating the delivery of new nuclear, the OND also advises the Secretary of State on the exercise of his regulatory and policy functions in relation to the nuclear industry.
This includes responsibility for:
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Contact Us
General enquiries
Tel:0300 060 4000
e-mail: enquiries@decc.gsi.gov.uk