What the planned Hinkley Point C reactor would look like; from EDF Energy.

Over budget, behind schedule, beset with “anomalies” to its reactor vessel and faulty cooling-system valves … EDF’s Flamanville 3 nuclear reactor is more than just a French headache; it’s causing serious stress in London as well. That’s because the planned Hinkley Point C reactor in the UK is supposed to use the same new-generation Areva European Pressurized Reactor technology as Flamanville.

But here’s an interesting twist: According to the Financial Times, the UK government, criticized in many quarters for vastly overpaying for the Hinkley energy, might actually be growing eager to ditch the project. And the EDF/Areva problems could provide a convenient escape hatch.

“I think Treasury officials would not be disappointed if Hinkley never happened,” said one Whitehall source. “They have been foot-dragging for at least a year.”

One Tory figure said: “I think the Treasury don’t really want that deal to work.” – Anonymous sources quoted in the Financial Times