Berkeley nuclear power station

Berkeley nuclear power station stands on the bank of the River Severn in Gloucestershire. The Magnox plant was built in the 1950s by AEI and John Thompson and began generating electricity in 1962. Two Magnox reactors produced 276 megawatts, enough for a city the size of Bristol. Fuel arrived and left by rail from a siding on the Sharpness line. The station ran for 27 years until 1989. It was the first UK commercial nuclear station to close and is now being decommissioned. All fuel was removed by 1992 and the turbine hall demolished in 1995. Cooling ponds followed in 2001, while five of the 310-tonne boilers were shipped to Sweden for recycling in 2012. In 2014 Berkeley became an interim store for intermediate-level waste from Oldbury. The surrounding area is a wetland of international importance. South of the site, Berkeley Nuclear Laboratories once employed 750 staff. The former labs now form the Gloucestershire Science & Technology Park, home to Bloodhound LSR and a college campus. Plans are under way to create a nuclear technology and low-carbon energy cluster on the land.