Mini-nuclear plants may be an experiment worth exploring

Roll-Royce gave an eye-catching pitch but the economics of nuclear power needs further inspection

An energy white paper is in the offing, so consider Rolls-Royce's pitch for the wonders of small modular reactors (SMRs) a piece of last-minute lobbying. After all, it is clear already that more nuclear, in combination with more offshore wind capacity, is likely to be judged a central way to meet the UK's targets for cutting carbon emissions.

It's an eye-catching pitch. A domestic energy solution for the first time in a generation, with a product that is engineered, designed and manufactured in the UK," as Tom Samson, the chief executive of the nine-member Rolls-led UK SMR consortium puts it. So not one of those mammoth 20bn-plus French-led and Chinese-backed Hinkley Point C constructions.