The UK nuclear power industry is facing two key financial events that could have a major impact on new nuclear construction including the planned Sizewell C nuclear station and the deployment of small modular reactors, industry sources have said.

The country’s Labour government will unveil its budget for the 2024-25 financial year on 26 March, followed in the second half of June by a spending review for the next three financial years covering the period from 2025 to 2027.

“The two big items for expenditure are the Sizewell C final investment decision [FID] and the SMR [small modular reactor] competition,” said Stephen Thomas, a professor of energy policy at the University of Greenwich in London.