British Energy has rejected a deal that would have resulted in eight of Britain’s nuclear power stations sold off to a leading French state-owned energy company. EDF was expected to make announcement of a £12bn deal to take over British Energy.

However, it is learnt that shareholders of British Energy argued the soaring price of energy could lead to a higher offer. The rejection is being perceived as a major setback to Britain’s plans to cut down greenhouse gases by generating more on nuclear energy.

The government holds a 35 per cent stake in BE and is believed to have supported the deal that would have raised nearly £4bn for the chancellor. But Investec and Prudential, the firms that together own about 22 per cent, felt the 765 pence-per-share bid was too low.

EDF stated it was still hopeful ‘to be a major actor in the nuclear rebirth of the UK.’
Although the deal could still be revived, the latest development has come as a major disappointment for the UK government, looking to get the construction of new nuclear power stations going at the earliest to replace the ageing Magnox reactors.

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