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Energy Bill

It would not. But, as I indicated, over time, a power station that is constructed in five years’ time might face a different risk cost unit price from one built later. The price is the one against which the station is built and which it recognises is the fixed unit price that it bears throughout its operation. I am merely indicating that the clause does not need the amendment of the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, but it did need the stimulus of his amendment to provoke this debate, which I hope is clarifying the issues. If those costs can be reduced through improved technology with regard to decommissioning, the power station might find that it gets some return against the improved technology. What it does know is that that is the maximum fixed unit price which it will have to meet. That is the certainty and that is the guarantee. Of course, it may be that over time the power station can see that it will get additional profits through the advantages of new technology, which reduces the decommissioning cost. But it cannot bank on that. The certainty is the price that it is given when it is constructed. Those costs will differ over time: it is not a fixed price for everybody, but depends on when one is engaging in that operation. The noble Lord, Lord Palmer, asked whether I was in a position to give anyone a fixed cost. The answer is no, not at all. I do not think that anyone would expect, within the framework of this Committee, that I could. But the intention is clear that when the first nuclear new build occurs, it will be building against a clear fixed cost, which will give certainty.