Jul 11, 2006, 17:14 GMT
London - The British government Tuesday advocated the construction of a new generation of atomic power stations and said nuclear power would make a 'significant contribution' to the country's future energy needs.
Presenting the government's long-awaited energy review in parliament, Trade and Industry Secretary Alistair Darling said Britain was aiming for an energy mix that would include renewables such as wind, solar and tidal sources.
The government argues that without nuclear power, Britain will become dependent on gas for 55 per cent of its energy needs by 2020, with up to 90 per cent imported from potentially unstable regions such as the Middle East, Central Asia and Russia.
Nuclear power currently provides about a third of Britain's energy needs.
The government also maintains that a revival of nuclear power would help Britain achieve international goals on cuts in carbon emissions.
With Britain moving into a situation where it had to import energy, nuclear power stations would at least have to be replaced, Prime Minister Tony Blair said earlier Tuesday.
'It's not a question of either/or, it's everything that's got to be done to make a difference,' Blair said.
'These decisions have to be taken now. Fifteen years down the line we have got high energy prices and real problems,' he added.
His remarks came as an official report showed that British North Sea oil output has declined steadily since 1999, making the UK a net importer of oil for the first time last summer, before swinging back into surplus.
Darling pledged that the government would seek to increase the share of renewable energy sources to 20 per cent by 2020, from the present level of 4 per cent.
The report did not specify how many new nuclear power stations would be built, adding that the government wished to let 'the market decide' on future needs.
It was, however, considered essential that Britain would not be overdependent on a single source of supply.
It is expected that eventually six new nuclear power stations will built, the Times said Tuesday.
According to Darling, decisions about renewing and replacing ageing nuclear power stations had to be taken now to ensure the 'consistency and security' of energy provision.
He said the government was looking favourably at studies investigating the geological disposal of nuclear waste and was cooperating with Norway on so-called 'carbon capture,' the capture and storage of carbon dioxide in disused oil fields in the North Sea.
The proposals were expected to be rejected outright by a large number of Labour MPs, who have vowed to fight the revival of nuclear power all the way.
The opposition Liberal Democrats reject nuclear power outright, while the Conservatives, under their new leader David Cameron, have not committed themselves to a nuclear agenda.
On Tuesday, Cameron said nuclear energy should be 'the last resort' while the 'green revolution' should be unleashed with full force.
On Monday, a parliamentary committee report warned the government that it was in danger of rushing into the construction of nuclear plants without obtaining broad political and public support for the move.
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