Guest: Alex Young, Head of Development, Evero Energy
Interviewed by: Antony Oliver

In today's podcast we are talking about bioenergy and specifically looking at how carbon capture and storage is set to transform the technology.

The UK’s net zero energy transition is firmly underway and one of the most promising new technologies is Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage, or BECCS. By combining the generation of renewable power with the permanent removal of CO₂, BECCS has been described as a “double win” for climate action.

Ovivo UK, based in Colchester, is the latest company in the region to have been awarded a significant contract on the Sizewell C project in East Suffolk.

The company, which has extensive experience in the nuclear industry, are experts in water technology, and their work at Sizewell C will involve the design, manufacture, and installation of advanced filtration systems. These systems will aid seawater abstraction for cooling the power station’s steam condensers before the water is safely returned to the sea.

EDF, Britain’s biggest generator of zero carbon electricity, has agreed a partnership with Fidra Energy, backed by EIG, to manage and optimise two large battery storage units at the Thorpe Marsh project in Yorkshire. Together, these units will provide 560MW of storage capacity.

Holtec International, EDF UK and Tritax Management today announced their intent to work together to develop Holtec’s SMR-300 small modular reactors at the former Cottam coal-fired power station in Nottinghamshire, to provide clean, secure power to new, advanced data centres on the site. This intent is formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding signed between Holtec, EDF UK and their real estate partner Tritax Management.

New jobs and growth as companies in the UK and United States sign major new deals to turbocharge the build-out of new nuclear power stations.

The deals between US and UK companies have been enabled by a new agreement between the US and UK governments, expected to be signed at the state visit this week. This will make it quicker for companies to build new nuclear power stations in both countries, for example by speeding up the time it takes for a nuclear project to get a licence from roughly three or four years to roughly two.

Three apprentices from Nuclear Restoration Services (NRS) had the privilege of attending a prestigious Parliamentary event marking 20 years of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) group; two decades of innovation, collaboration, and progress in nuclear decommissioning.

Hosted by Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Speaker of the House of Commons, the event brought together MPs, Lords, senior civil servants, and leaders from across the nuclear sector.

Babcock and Palantir are transforming the build and through-life support of warships, starting with the Arrowhead family and expanding across all Arrowhead projects. The partnership is enabling production and operations teams to make better and more data-driven decisions through our capabilities on the Palantir Platform – resulting in faster build programmes, more effective support services, and more efficient asset lifespans.

Scottish Government grants consent order for SSE’s Berwick Bank offshore wind farm, after a decade of meticulous development work

Berwick Bank has the potential to inject c.£8 billion of value into the UK economy and create over 9,000 UK jobs

At full capacity, Berwick Bank could generate enough electricity to power more than six million homes annually

Oklo Inc has announced plans to design, build, and operate a facility at Oak Ridge in Tennessee to recycle used nuclear fuel into fuel for fast reactors like the company's own Aurora powerhouse, and is teaming up with TVA to look into recycling the utility's used fuel.

The fuel recycling facility will be the first phase of a USD1.68 billion advanced fuel centre, the company said.

The first of 24 gyrotrons has been installed on the top floor of the ITER experimental fusion reactor under construction in Cadarache, southern France. Meanwhile, General Atomics has completed the six central solenoid modules for the ITER device.

HS2’s construction partner, EKFB, is hosting its third annual schools’ event in Buckinghamshire next week, and there’s still time for local schools and colleges to sign up.

Making Tracks into Construction will welcome up to 2,000 students to EKFB’s construction site near Bicester from 16 - 20 September 2025.

The event includes 25 exhibits hosted by HS2’s supply chain partners, including Flannery, GAP and Ferrovial Construction. Experts from a range of job roles, including geology and safety, will be on hand to speak to students about careers and pathways into construction.

The 2.1-mile-long structure carries Britain’s new high-speed railway across a series of roads, lakes, the River Colne and the Grand Union Canal, north west of London. Trains will operate at 200mph on the viaduct’s gentle curve which is formed of 1,000 uniquely-shaped deck segments.