A project to build a nuclear power station near Sellafield in Cumbria could begin generating electricity in 2025, a year earlier than the scheme proposed for Hinkley Point by EDF.

NuGen, a venture between Toshiba, of Japan, and France’s Engie — formerly GDF Suez — plans to have three reactors up and running within nine years. If the schedule is correct, NuGen would overtake EDF, which has repeatedly delayed plans for its £18 billion plant in Somerset. If built, the project would be the first nuclear plant in Britain since Sizewell B, which entered service in 1995.

NuGen plans three AP1000 pressurised water reactors at the site in Cumbria, using an established nuclear technology. The project could supply up to 3.8 gigawatts, about 7 per cent of UK electricity.