'Mini-nukes' plan to help cut Britain's power bills

MINISTERS will this week announce a push to speed up the building of nuclear power stations in a bid to drive down household energy bills.

Energy Secretary Grant Shapps is set to launch an international contest to build the world's first 'mini-nukes' in the UK as part of his 'Powering Up Britain' plan - to be launched on Thursday.

The Government has created a new agency, 'Great British Nuclear', to support the development of new nuclear power.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced £20billion of investment over the next 20 years for projects aiming to store 20-30million tons of CO2 a year by 2030.

Mr Shapps has said he wants to drive down bills and transform Britain's energy security.

'I want to make sure bills come down and stay down, so we are better insulated from volatile international markets and the whims of tyrants,' he wrote in the Sun at the weekend.

Mini-nukes are expected to generate 300MW or less each - less than a tenth the output of the new Hinkley Point reactor being built in Somerset.