Cheshire experts close oldest nuclear stations.

Byline: BY LARRY NEILD City Editor

NUCLEAR experts from Cheshire celebrated New Year's Day by bringing to an end 40 years of nuclear power generation at the Sizewell and Dungeness power plants.

But it will take another 100 years to complete the decommissioning and clearance of the sites.

Warrington-based British Nuclear Group confirmed that it reached the planned end of electricity generation at both the Dungeness A and Sizewell A power stations, operated by the company.

It meant a team from the company working through the holiday to ensure a shutdown of the two plants.

The announcement came after 40 years of safe electricity generation, at both of the sites, and marks the start of the defuelling and decommissioning phase.

By ceasing generation, simultaneously on December 31, British Nuclear Group achieved the target date outlined by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in its Strategy document, published earlier this year. Last night, Mark Morant, managing director of British Nuclear Group's reactor sites business, said: "These two power stations have fulfilled a vital role in providing electricity for the south east of England and both their operational and safety records have been exemplary.

"These sites will now enter into the next phase of their operational lives which includes the de-fuelling of the reactors and removing the vast majority of the radiological hazard."

Under current strategy, the decommissioning period is scheduled to last up to 100 years, ending with the final site clearance and closure.

Sizewell A and Dungeness A became the latest Magnox nuclear power stations to begin their decommissioning period, leaving only two of the UK's first generation of commercial nuclear power stations operating.

Dungeness A nuclear power station began operating in 1965 and has consistently produced electricity ever since.

The two Dungeness A reactors were jointly capable of producing 438MW of electricity.

Sizewell A began operating in 1966, supplying 10 million KWh each day to the UK's national grid.

Combined, the two power stations provided more than 1% of the UK's total generating capacity and were the oldest operating nuclear power stations in the world.

Dungeness and Sizewell have both supplied approximately 120bn KWh of electricity in their lifetimes.

These are part of the Magnox group of reactors, which include the world's first commercial nuclear power station and pioneered this type of electricity generation in the UK.

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These stations have fulfilled a vital role

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The Sizewell nuclear power plant which, along with the Dungeness site, has been shut down