BBC News 20 July 2022
The government has given the go-ahead for the new Sizewell C nuclear power plant on the Suffolk coast.
The project, mainly funded by the French energy company EDF, is expected to cost in the region of £20bn.
Campaigners Stop Sizewell C said they "will we be looking closely at appealing this decision".
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has to grant consent for nationally significant infrastructure projects.
The power plant would be built next to the existing Sizewell B power plant, which is still generating electricity, while Sizewell A has been decommissioned.
EDF said a new two-reactor plant would generate 3.2 gigawatts (GW) of electricity, enough to provide 7% of the UK's needs.
It could power the equivalent of about six million homes and would generate electricity for 60 years, the firm said.
The government has committed £100m to developing the project and planned to take a 20% stake in the plant.
Local anti-nuclear campaigners have objected to the plant on several grounds, including that it would be built next to the RSPB's Minsmere nature reserve and have a negative effect on wildlife.
A spokesman for Stop Sizewell C said: "Not only will we be looking closely at appealing this decision, we'll continue to challenge every aspect of Sizewell C."
