NUCLEAR company NuGen is about to start offshore drilling as it steps up preparations to build a nuclear power plant at Moorside, Sellafield. It is due to give the go-ahead for plans for three Westinghouse AP1000 rectors in 2018, with construction starting two years later. Work to assess the site is gathering pace. NuGen began drilling at Moorside in December and will begin the first phase of off-shore drilling in the next few days. It says the results will inform the design and layout of Moorside, and support licensing, planning applications and other consents. The first phase involves drilling 11 boreholes into the seabed, and the collection and testing of geological samples. This should be completed over the summer, followed by a second phase of offshore drilling to begin in the spring or summer of 2017.
In Cumbria 28th April 2016 read more »