Nuclear sector needs state aid, says EDF chief

A new generation of nuclear power stations will not be built unless there is financial support from the Government, according to the boss of the UK's biggest nuclear provider.

Vincent de Rivaz, UK boss of EDF Energy, told the Financial Times that a 'level playing field' had to be created in the energy sector, with nuclear receiving similar subsidies to renewables like wind.

Otherwise, he warned, investors may think building new reactors is too risky.

EDF, which bought British Energy last year for £12.5bn, is planning to build at least four new nuclear plants in Britain, costing up to £4.4bn each.

But De Rivas said the power giant had to assure its investors - including the French government, which owns an 85% stake - that the plans made commercial sense.

"We have a final investment decision to make in 2011 and, for that decision to give the go-ahead, the conditions need to be right," he said.

De Rivaz argued that Government support for other low-carbon sources of electricity should be extended to nuclear as well.

This could involve penalties paid by rival fossil fuel power generators being kept high, he suggested

The Government announced in April it had identified 11 potential sites for the new power stations. The first station could be live by 2017.