1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,360 for the size or sea project in the UK and size or sea is a proposed new nuclear 2 00:00:06,360 --> 00:00:08,400 power plant in Suffolk. 3 00:00:13,800 --> 00:00:18,440 Hello everyone on today's episode of the Afrinuk podcast we have Claire Toghuz 4 00:00:18,440 --> 00:00:23,840 from the size well sea construction site in the UK. We want to have a very 5 00:00:23,840 --> 00:00:27,920 interesting conversation with her on issues bordering the construction and 6 00:00:27,920 --> 00:00:33,560 also nuclear technology and renewables and she can also give us some tips about 7 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:39,560 the copper indices coming up in the UK. So Claire can you tell us a bit about yourself and what you do? 8 00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:47,560 Thanks for having me. So I'm Claire I currently work in the UK nuclear industry on the development of the size well sea projects. 9 00:00:47,560 --> 00:00:52,520 So size well sea is a proposed new nuclear power plant in Suffolk and it will be an 10 00:00:52,520 --> 00:00:57,280 exact copy of Hinkley Point Sea which is currently under construction in Somerset 11 00:00:57,280 --> 00:01:02,240 in the UK and once operational size well sea could provide 7% of Britain's 12 00:01:02,240 --> 00:01:07,360 current energy demand and that's the equipment of about 6 million homes. So 13 00:01:07,360 --> 00:01:12,160 I'm part of the financing and economic regulation team for the size well sea 14 00:01:12,160 --> 00:01:15,560 project which is a bit of a mouthful but really what it means is that we're the 15 00:01:15,560 --> 00:01:19,600 team that are engaging the government and investors to help make the case for 16 00:01:19,600 --> 00:01:23,880 the size well sea project and something else that we're looking at is developing 17 00:01:23,880 --> 00:01:27,240 the wider uses of nuclear and this is something that's quite exciting that we're 18 00:01:27,240 --> 00:01:30,400 looking to do with size well sea which will actually be different to Hinkley 19 00:01:30,400 --> 00:01:34,320 Point Sea and all other nuclear power plants currently operational in the UK. 20 00:01:34,320 --> 00:01:39,160 So whereas Hinkley Point Sea will be built to produce grid scale electricity 21 00:01:39,160 --> 00:01:43,520 and solely provide its power to the grid, at size well sea we're actually looking 22 00:01:43,520 --> 00:01:48,000 at building it to be energy-centred ready and so what that means is that the 23 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:52,760 vast amounts of heat and low carbon energy that are produced by the nuclear 24 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:59,440 plants will be used for a range of different purposes and so we're looking 25 00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:03,800 at potentially co-locating things like hydrogen production and producing 26 00:02:03,800 --> 00:02:07,360 synthetic fuels and possibly providing some of the low carbon heat to 27 00:02:07,360 --> 00:02:12,520 industrial processes and districting. So it's a labour-e-dining type is it? 28 00:02:12,520 --> 00:02:19,240 Yeah absolutely so the size of the energy hub and elements of the new so things 29 00:02:19,240 --> 00:02:23,680 like hydrogen is a new technology that we'll be looking to 30 00:02:23,680 --> 00:02:28,640 generate with nuclear power but also other elements like the use of nuclear 31 00:02:28,640 --> 00:02:32,440 heat for industrial heating networks although it's not something that's been 32 00:02:32,440 --> 00:02:36,020 done in the UK actually has been done in a number of other 33 00:02:36,020 --> 00:02:40,320 countries around the world so it's just new for the UK and it's 34 00:02:40,320 --> 00:02:44,160 something that actually also increases the flexibility of the nuclear power plants. 35 00:02:44,160 --> 00:02:49,800 The size well sea reactor type is it going to be a smaller one compared to 36 00:02:49,800 --> 00:02:56,880 the Hinkley point C? No so size well sea will be an exact copy of Hinkley point C 37 00:02:56,880 --> 00:03:03,360 so Hinkley point C is a twin EPR reactor design and a huge amount of work 38 00:03:03,360 --> 00:03:07,640 went into getting that reactor design approved through the UK regulatory 39 00:03:07,640 --> 00:03:13,000 regulation process and so there's some real benefits of replicating what's been 40 00:03:13,000 --> 00:03:18,160 done at Hinkley point C to that size well sea. The difference with size well sea is 41 00:03:18,160 --> 00:03:22,180 that we're looking at once that EPR reactor has been built can we use the 42 00:03:22,180 --> 00:03:26,160 low carbon heat and the low carbon electricity that's produced in different 43 00:03:26,160 --> 00:03:29,960 ways but the design itself will be a replication and then there'll be big 44 00:03:29,960 --> 00:03:34,240 benefits in terms of the Hinkley sea as a result of that. Okay that's fantastic 45 00:03:34,240 --> 00:03:40,000 and you know nuclear projects globally have a very interesting characteristics 46 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:47,280 and it surrounds a whole lot of industries getting to have some kind of 47 00:03:47,280 --> 00:03:52,520 vested interest and people as well but the people or the land where it's going 48 00:03:52,520 --> 00:03:58,080 to be built must have their own sea and that comes to the politics so what is a 49 00:03:58,080 --> 00:04:01,660 current political sentiment around nuclear now how will the project be 50 00:04:01,660 --> 00:04:09,120 financed? In the UK there have been a number of announcements around the 51 00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:13,000 future energy mix and the way that the government see us meeting our ambition 52 00:04:13,000 --> 00:04:17,200 to reach net zero and I should probably just start by saying that actually in the UK the 53 00:04:17,200 --> 00:04:21,560 government have committed to a legally binding target to achieve net zero by 54 00:04:21,560 --> 00:04:27,120 2050 and so at the end of last year they came out with two things there was 55 00:04:27,120 --> 00:04:31,360 something called the Prime Minister's ten point plan which set out ten key 56 00:04:31,360 --> 00:04:35,640 technologies which he saw as playing at the government sea as playing a key role 57 00:04:35,640 --> 00:04:39,720 in reaching net zero and there was also something called the energy white paper 58 00:04:39,720 --> 00:04:44,680 and both of those announcements set out a commitment to nuclear and a 59 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:49,600 recognition that nuclear renewables together can play a key role in our 60 00:04:49,600 --> 00:04:55,080 future net zero energy mix. Yeah that's really interesting you know I'm having to 61 00:04:55,080 --> 00:05:01,840 see the nuclear technology lending its hands to various kind of application is 62 00:05:01,840 --> 00:05:06,120 really interesting to see because people have always seen it as something that 63 00:05:06,120 --> 00:05:12,240 just generates electricity and having it to lend itself to hydrogen generation 64 00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:18,120 like gives a lot of credence to the climate change pursuits that nations 65 00:05:18,120 --> 00:05:23,960 are on to currently so it's really interesting to see how that is going so 66 00:05:23,960 --> 00:05:28,240 can you tell us a bit more about the finance like at what stage it is like 67 00:05:28,240 --> 00:05:33,720 are there fears that it might not scale like the Hinckley point C or like what 68 00:05:33,720 --> 00:05:38,240 is being done like in comparison with the Hinckley point C like I want yeah 69 00:05:38,240 --> 00:05:43,440 absolutely so Hinckley point C was the first nuclear new build project in the 70 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:49,120 UK in a generation so it really revived the new build industry and 71 00:05:49,120 --> 00:05:52,360 that's created thousands of jobs across the whole country for its supply chain 72 00:05:52,360 --> 00:05:56,880 and size will see as I mentioned intends to replicate what's been done at 73 00:05:56,880 --> 00:06:00,120 Hinckley point C so use all the skills and the knowledge and the people that 74 00:06:00,120 --> 00:06:04,080 have been developed through the new build program Hinckley point C to build 75 00:06:04,080 --> 00:06:09,520 size or see and that's significant for the financing because this 76 00:06:09,520 --> 00:06:14,520 replication reduces the cost of financing and the cost of financing was 77 00:06:14,520 --> 00:06:18,960 about two-thirds of the Hinckley point C strike price but the size or see because 78 00:06:18,960 --> 00:06:23,880 the risk associated with the construction projects will be significantly lower 79 00:06:23,880 --> 00:06:30,560 we're exploring a regulated asset based model financing model but what that 80 00:06:30,560 --> 00:06:33,560 means is that because there's lower risk there's an opportunity to bring in the 81 00:06:33,560 --> 00:06:38,760 financing at a lower cost and then quite significantly reduce the cost so the 82 00:06:38,760 --> 00:06:44,320 current proposed financing model and the size or see project are engaging with 83 00:06:44,320 --> 00:06:48,400 the government or about is the regulated asset based model and this model 84 00:06:48,400 --> 00:06:52,840 would allow UK financial investors so your big institutional investors like 85 00:06:52,840 --> 00:06:57,840 pension funds to invest in the project that's quite interesting to know to have 86 00:06:57,840 --> 00:07:01,960 a regulator based financing model like I'm just hearing this for the first time 87 00:07:01,960 --> 00:07:06,720 and you know it's the major discouraging factor or may do I say 88 00:07:06,720 --> 00:07:11,320 determining factor to many countries or people that want to get the technology 89 00:07:11,320 --> 00:07:16,960 the finance and having this financing model I really hope that it comes up 90 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:25,040 sooner than later and you know I got a lot of people commenting about the high 91 00:07:25,040 --> 00:07:29,880 cost of a runs and not just the comment but it's normally the mainstay of how 92 00:07:29,880 --> 00:07:35,160 nuclear power plant new builds are like it's usually a very capital intensive 93 00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:40,680 project and if this can come on and show a very strong point that it can be done 94 00:07:40,680 --> 00:07:46,880 I think it will sound a very great note to the international community that 95 00:07:46,880 --> 00:07:52,880 nuclear can be done and with some all parties and agreeing to it and yeah this 96 00:07:52,880 --> 00:08:00,120 takes me to the next point you know nuclear technology starting to be applied 97 00:08:00,120 --> 00:08:05,000 for nuclear power plant and for electricity generation has been since 98 00:08:05,000 --> 00:08:10,880 1950s and the UK and the developed world has been our head of this in this 99 00:08:10,880 --> 00:08:16,040 technology and this current climate change and the 100 00:08:16,040 --> 00:08:22,800 COP26 is coming up in the UK luckily the UK is pro-nuclear and I'm happy that 101 00:08:22,800 --> 00:08:28,520 this is happening in the soil we are the COP delegate to be coming and I hope 102 00:08:28,520 --> 00:08:32,960 that the community over there are really gearing up to give a very strong 103 00:08:32,960 --> 00:08:39,200 position for nuclear so as copies of PONOS coming in November what is your 104 00:08:39,200 --> 00:08:46,520 take on the UK and Africa's energy landscape Africa is quite vast and diverse 105 00:08:46,520 --> 00:08:54,440 as well how can these two people UK and Africa these two entities how can they 106 00:08:54,440 --> 00:08:59,920 kind of collaborate to reach their climate goals and what are the things 107 00:08:59,920 --> 00:09:05,160 they can learn from each other as they as they carry on on this on the climate 108 00:09:05,160 --> 00:09:10,080 journey yeah I mean to COP26 is the biggest summit the UK's ever hosted 109 00:09:10,080 --> 00:09:14,000 and it's you know the most significant climate event since the Paris 110 00:09:14,000 --> 00:09:18,760 agreement which is when the country is committed to keeping temperatures below 111 00:09:18,760 --> 00:09:24,720 two degrees so COP26 is an opportunity to set even more ambitious climate goals 112 00:09:24,720 --> 00:09:29,360 and there are some certainly similarities and the challenges that the UK 113 00:09:29,360 --> 00:09:33,880 and Africa face in in order to reach net zero so as I mentioned the UK 114 00:09:33,880 --> 00:09:37,840 governments set a legally binding target to reach net zero and I understand 115 00:09:37,840 --> 00:09:42,600 South Africa last year also set a similar target to reach net zero by 2050 116 00:09:42,600 --> 00:09:50,320 still in the UK the current energy mix is about 40% gas 20% renewables 20% 117 00:09:50,320 --> 00:09:56,560 nuclear and 10% from other sources such as coal and imports so in order to reach 118 00:09:56,560 --> 00:10:01,880 net zero the coal and the gas needs to need to come off the energy system and 119 00:10:01,880 --> 00:10:05,960 also the Committee on Climate Change who are the body of the advice the UK 120 00:10:05,960 --> 00:10:10,240 government on on net zero and climate related issues have said that not only 121 00:10:10,240 --> 00:10:15,200 will we need to replace the carbon intensive forms of energy on our system 122 00:10:15,200 --> 00:10:19,280 they're also forecasting that the actual energy demands at the UK will double 123 00:10:19,280 --> 00:10:24,720 and that's as things like cars move to electric and other potentially heat so 124 00:10:24,720 --> 00:10:29,520 so much more of our activities will be powered by electricity so the scale of 125 00:10:29,520 --> 00:10:35,160 that that challenge is huge and similarly in in Africa I think perhaps even a 126 00:10:35,160 --> 00:10:40,120 slightly larger portion of the current energy mix is is coal at the moment so 127 00:10:40,120 --> 00:10:45,640 in order to bring that off yeah yeah so in order to to replace that and then get 128 00:10:45,640 --> 00:10:50,200 to net zero we're gonna need a lot more of all forms of low carbon technology so 129 00:10:50,200 --> 00:10:54,400 that's renewables nuclear and also some of these new emerging technologies like 130 00:10:54,400 --> 00:10:59,800 hydrogen and CCUS which is looking at capturing carbon from the atmosphere so 131 00:10:59,800 --> 00:11:03,120 I think yeah absolutely I mean COP26 is an opportunity for all countries to come 132 00:11:03,120 --> 00:11:08,040 together and then countries like Africa and UK the UK to come together and set 133 00:11:08,040 --> 00:11:12,600 ambitious climate targets and also discuss that pathway for how they will 134 00:11:12,600 --> 00:11:17,680 actually reach the net zero ambitions yeah that's really good and and there's a 135 00:11:17,680 --> 00:11:23,440 very great lesson especially from the UK having a very clear definition of their 136 00:11:23,440 --> 00:11:29,560 goals towards 2050 so many African countries don't have that clear cut 137 00:11:29,560 --> 00:11:36,600 definitions of we are they actually going if in the energy scape on trying to 138 00:11:36,600 --> 00:11:41,840 reach the climate goals so it's really a great lesson to for most African countries 139 00:11:41,840 --> 00:11:46,880 to learn from these clear definitions of where they are going and thanks to South 140 00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:53,720 Africa who already have stated that they have that some net zero goal for 2050 141 00:11:53,720 --> 00:11:59,280 that's really interesting to know I hope so many African countries listening to 142 00:11:59,280 --> 00:12:05,760 this podcast will actually adopt this clear defined goals and since we've 143 00:12:05,760 --> 00:12:10,320 talked about this COP26 and how renewables and nuclear should combine 144 00:12:10,320 --> 00:12:17,440 this is a very great low carbon resource that we can use to meet our energy 145 00:12:17,440 --> 00:12:22,600 needs do you think there is any way these two industries because the renewables 146 00:12:22,600 --> 00:12:28,080 when people are saying renewables I was talking with Jeremy Gordon earlier so he 147 00:12:28,080 --> 00:12:33,400 was like when people are saying we need to go 100% renewables that's like saying 148 00:12:33,400 --> 00:12:38,800 zero nuclear you know so do you think there is any way we can combine these 149 00:12:38,800 --> 00:12:44,240 two industries to work together in the run-up to COP26 or going for that in the 150 00:12:44,240 --> 00:12:51,880 net zero goal yeah absolutely I mean I think nuclear and renewables both have 151 00:12:51,880 --> 00:12:56,920 a completely vital part to play in a future net zero energy mix 152 00:12:56,920 --> 00:13:01,200 renewables are a fantastic technology the cost has come down significantly over 153 00:13:01,200 --> 00:13:05,800 the last decade and and the technologies continually developing so in the UK when 154 00:13:05,800 --> 00:13:10,800 now things like floating wind which can be further offshore which opens up the 155 00:13:10,800 --> 00:13:15,080 amount of seabed in which to build them but also allows them to capture the 156 00:13:15,080 --> 00:13:20,600 greater levels of wind that you get further offshore however renewables are 157 00:13:20,600 --> 00:13:24,560 a variable source of generation so quite simply you know when the wind doesn't 158 00:13:24,560 --> 00:13:30,120 blow and sunsets shine they don't generate power and therefore you need in 159 00:13:30,120 --> 00:13:34,520 order to balance your energy mix and to keep the lights on all the time a form 160 00:13:34,520 --> 00:13:39,380 of base load in that mix alongside renewables France and Sweden are great 161 00:13:39,380 --> 00:13:43,200 examples of countries who have decarbonized their electricity systems 162 00:13:43,200 --> 00:13:48,480 using a mix of nuclear and renewables and countries like the UK and Africa can 163 00:13:48,480 --> 00:13:51,400 look to these countries as a bit of blueprint for their own future energy 164 00:13:51,400 --> 00:13:55,320 mixes and there's a clear role there for the nuclear and renewables industries to 165 00:13:55,320 --> 00:13:59,040 collaborate and work together and I think there's also examples from 166 00:13:59,040 --> 00:14:02,600 countries you know like Germany and California where you can quite clearly 167 00:14:02,600 --> 00:14:08,800 see the potential consequences of them to decarbonize about nuclear and I think 168 00:14:08,800 --> 00:14:12,360 Germany is the one that's often pointed to as a country that's invested 169 00:14:12,360 --> 00:14:16,520 really heavily in renewables at the exclusion of nuclear and actually in 170 00:14:16,520 --> 00:14:21,440 spite of that really heavy investments and the money into renewables they 171 00:14:21,440 --> 00:14:26,160 still have struggled to decarbonize their energy mix like I think in January 172 00:14:26,160 --> 00:14:30,560 this year Germany actually had to announce plans to open new coal plants and 173 00:14:30,560 --> 00:14:34,240 what that shows is that there isn't really this choice between renewables 174 00:14:34,240 --> 00:14:39,200 and nuclear if you do opposite to nuclear isn't more renewables it's 175 00:14:39,200 --> 00:14:44,240 something like a carbon intensive base load like gas with the exception of 176 00:14:44,240 --> 00:14:48,240 course of a couple of countries who have great natural resources for 177 00:14:48,240 --> 00:14:52,720 technologies like geothermal and hydro so Norway as an example of one of these 178 00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:57,640 countries and they get their base load from these renewable sources but 179 00:14:57,640 --> 00:15:03,760 overall I think there's a clear role for the nuclear renewables to play together 180 00:15:03,760 --> 00:15:09,280 in a in an energy mix and to ensure that we can reach that zero. Wow that's really 181 00:15:09,280 --> 00:15:14,280 great and informative Claire you've talked really authoritatively about 182 00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:20,120 nuclear technology and how it should interface with renewables and how 183 00:15:20,120 --> 00:15:25,200 countries have made decisions on combining this duo powerful energy 184 00:15:25,200 --> 00:15:33,000 resource there are very few people like you especially gender based talking about 185 00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:38,520 gender like I consider you a very fantastic female working in the nuclear 186 00:15:38,520 --> 00:15:43,880 industries very rare I've met a female reactor operator although she went on to 187 00:15:43,880 --> 00:15:49,040 work in an international organization so I would say that you are one of a kind 188 00:15:49,040 --> 00:15:54,280 like one in a million if I may say so it's really length credence to the 189 00:15:54,280 --> 00:15:59,720 abilities of the human mind and people should not be limited by their maybe 190 00:15:59,720 --> 00:16:07,360 gender or whatever biases may come up from societal constructs so I'm really 191 00:16:07,360 --> 00:16:12,560 enthralled by how you are able to demonstrate and really explain this 192 00:16:12,560 --> 00:16:19,120 hardcore technology especially for the UK energy and nuclear energy development 193 00:16:19,120 --> 00:16:24,000 and plants so I kind of wonder what does nuclear technology see in the passion 194 00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:29,560 you are showing and how you're able to demonstrate the direction that your 195 00:16:29,560 --> 00:16:35,120 country is going in this technology what does nuclear technology mean to you and 196 00:16:35,120 --> 00:16:41,200 do you think that someone can maybe through your suggestion get something 197 00:16:41,200 --> 00:16:46,680 maybe more information or can you point someone somewhere where the person can 198 00:16:46,680 --> 00:16:51,200 get a similar passion as yours or like the information that makes you more 199 00:16:51,200 --> 00:16:55,280 confident talking about nuclear so what does nuclear technology mean to you and 200 00:16:55,280 --> 00:17:00,320 where can people go to find out more about this technology yeah it's 201 00:17:00,320 --> 00:17:05,280 interesting is that I mean I think in terms of gender balance and diversity in 202 00:17:05,280 --> 00:17:09,280 the nuclear industry it's absolutely something in the UK that we've got some 203 00:17:09,280 --> 00:17:15,360 some clear ambitions around I think there are parts of the industry because 204 00:17:15,360 --> 00:17:19,080 there's such a huge range of roles within nuclear where you do get much more 205 00:17:19,080 --> 00:17:23,360 balance but there are also other areas like the construction side of the 206 00:17:23,360 --> 00:17:26,400 projects which have typically you know historically been much more male 207 00:17:26,400 --> 00:17:30,640 dominated careers so there's a huge amount of work that's going on to look 208 00:17:30,640 --> 00:17:35,640 at not just in nuclear but across a number of industries what can we do to 209 00:17:35,640 --> 00:17:40,320 promote like science and technology and engineering and math subjects at schools 210 00:17:40,320 --> 00:17:44,560 at that young age to get more gender balance there and then bring that up 211 00:17:44,560 --> 00:17:48,720 through the pipeline so that we do end up with workplaces that really reflect 212 00:17:48,720 --> 00:17:53,000 the societies that we live in because we understand that that's something that 213 00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:57,240 that is hugely beneficial to decision-making and creativity and 214 00:17:57,240 --> 00:18:00,920 creating inclusive workplaces and I think that's absolutely something that 215 00:18:00,920 --> 00:18:04,880 the UK nuclear industry and through these new build projects actually where 216 00:18:04,880 --> 00:18:08,880 there's this opportunity to bring in new people and we're creating new jobs and 217 00:18:08,880 --> 00:18:13,280 careers through this it's how can we do that and what can we do to ensure that 218 00:18:13,280 --> 00:18:18,120 we have an inclusive workplace that does appeal to everyone so that even at the 219 00:18:18,120 --> 00:18:21,840 recruitment stage we're bringing a diverse range of people in I think in 220 00:18:21,840 --> 00:18:26,600 terms of yeah what does nuclear technology mean to me I think it's a 221 00:18:26,600 --> 00:18:31,840 vital part of the future energy mix and it's a really huge technology that can 222 00:18:31,840 --> 00:18:36,400 help us get to net zero it's proven and it's scalable and that's what we need 223 00:18:36,400 --> 00:18:41,360 to get to net zero by 2050 in that time-bound way I also think the projects 224 00:18:41,360 --> 00:18:44,800 you know ultimately a new build nuclear project is a huge infrastructure project 225 00:18:44,800 --> 00:18:49,920 and you mentioned the local areas earlier on there so they create thousands of 226 00:18:49,920 --> 00:18:55,560 jobs and we're looking at things like apprenticeships and graduate schemes and 227 00:18:55,560 --> 00:19:00,880 local outreach to ensure that those jobs are having the socio-economic 228 00:19:00,880 --> 00:19:04,360 impacts that they could be a socio-economic impact that they can't 229 00:19:04,360 --> 00:19:09,040 really there are you know it is interesting there are public 230 00:19:09,040 --> 00:19:12,120 exception issues around it we are in traditionally I think the industry 231 00:19:12,120 --> 00:19:18,520 hasn't been necessarily the best about talking outwardly about the the benefits 232 00:19:18,520 --> 00:19:23,400 of the technology so I think for anyone you know just starting out and looking to 233 00:19:23,400 --> 00:19:27,680 understand a bit more I'm part of the network called Friends of Nuclear Energy 234 00:19:27,680 --> 00:19:33,560 so it's a group of students and young professionals it's been set up to really 235 00:19:33,560 --> 00:19:40,160 look at how we can provide very kind of easy accessible fact-based content on 236 00:19:40,160 --> 00:19:44,480 nuclear to promote the benefits of the technology outside the industry so I 237 00:19:44,480 --> 00:19:48,200 would suggest people have a look at the Instagram and LinkedIn pages that we 238 00:19:48,200 --> 00:19:56,240 have and maybe put the links in the podcast notes I can send those 239 00:19:56,240 --> 00:20:01,800 across to you. No problem I will share the link yeah yeah so that's great like so 240 00:20:01,800 --> 00:20:07,520 people can always connect to friends for nuclear right yeah and you're part of 241 00:20:07,520 --> 00:20:12,640 the YGN is that right because that's another great group of young people 242 00:20:12,640 --> 00:20:19,840 looking to communicate. The UK YGN actually making very strong efforts towards the COP26 243 00:20:19,840 --> 00:20:26,560 so I can't really wait to see the great outcome of the so much long-term 244 00:20:26,560 --> 00:20:32,120 investments to this ideal so you've been in the industry for quite a while now 245 00:20:32,120 --> 00:20:36,440 being able to demonstrate so much authority and information about the 246 00:20:36,440 --> 00:20:43,960 construction going on and also issues bordering the vice city the unique 247 00:20:43,960 --> 00:20:48,840 application of the size well see project that shows a very great wealth of 248 00:20:48,840 --> 00:20:53,080 information and depth of knowledge as well about the technology so I wonder 249 00:20:53,080 --> 00:20:58,760 like what are the things that have helped you what resources have you used 250 00:20:58,760 --> 00:21:02,840 that helped you to progress in your career to this level like some people 251 00:21:02,840 --> 00:21:08,320 that are coming up on decided about nuclear technology or like a career in 252 00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:14,840 engineering or stem field for example might be wondering oh it's a challenge 253 00:21:14,840 --> 00:21:19,720 to me like what kind of resources has helped you to this level in your career 254 00:21:19,720 --> 00:21:27,520 yeah so I mean I joined EDF as part of their graduate scheme so it was after I 255 00:21:27,520 --> 00:21:35,400 yes EDF French knows energy companies so largely nuclear but also looking at 256 00:21:35,400 --> 00:21:42,200 renewables in the UK as well and yeah I joined on that graduate scheme about four 257 00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:48,040 years ago now and during that scheme I did for six months placement so you're 258 00:21:48,040 --> 00:21:51,960 naturally rotated around the business which is an opportunity to really 259 00:21:51,960 --> 00:21:55,280 speak to different people hear about different roles here about different 260 00:21:55,280 --> 00:21:58,960 parts of the industry I think that's something that's hugely beneficial in 261 00:21:58,960 --> 00:22:04,160 any career actually regardless where you work when you you first join just 262 00:22:04,160 --> 00:22:08,120 doing what you can to understand different parts of the business and get a 263 00:22:08,120 --> 00:22:12,040 broader understanding of the industry you work in so even if you're not on a 264 00:22:12,040 --> 00:22:17,120 graduate scheme there's always ways to do that I think joining joining 265 00:22:17,120 --> 00:22:22,760 networks or events and just speaking to people in roles that you're interested 266 00:22:22,760 --> 00:22:25,880 in is a good way to build your knowledge and I think that's something that's 267 00:22:25,880 --> 00:22:30,840 very helpful so your company perhaps like more or less provided the 268 00:22:30,840 --> 00:22:34,880 environment for you to grow in that's really interesting and for companies 269 00:22:34,880 --> 00:22:41,000 that are looking to to build nuclear power plants and also develop the 270 00:22:41,000 --> 00:22:44,880 technology in some areas is very important for them to actually take the 271 00:22:44,880 --> 00:22:51,280 the overall growth of the human resource into consideration so that there will be 272 00:22:51,280 --> 00:22:57,240 a logical progression of the and career kind of progression if I may say in this 273 00:22:57,240 --> 00:23:05,800 company so you really touched on a very important part of our of our of this 274 00:23:05,800 --> 00:23:15,040 podcast and I wonder like you've talked about many aspects and I'm kind of drawn 275 00:23:15,040 --> 00:23:19,800 to ask you one more question before we round off I wonder like what's the best 276 00:23:19,800 --> 00:23:24,320 way to communicate with people I know there are some issues that make people 277 00:23:24,320 --> 00:23:29,880 uncomfortable when it comes to nuclear is either they don't know some things or 278 00:23:29,880 --> 00:23:35,520 they know and they are afraid of that thing they know or they are totally like 279 00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:41,520 like I don't know maybe unaware or like thrown off balanced by some facts so I 280 00:23:41,520 --> 00:23:46,440 wonder like how do you communicate with people about nuclear technology like how 281 00:23:46,440 --> 00:23:51,800 do you send a message about the benefit that's this nuclear technology has to 282 00:23:51,800 --> 00:23:57,360 offer not just not just from the technical side but when you come to the 283 00:23:57,360 --> 00:24:03,480 the show suicide the economics and the jobs that provides you've talked about 284 00:24:03,480 --> 00:24:08,800 like but people need to communicate it in a more clear way for people to actually 285 00:24:08,800 --> 00:24:14,480 see that this is what this technology can provide or bring to them yeah so I 286 00:24:14,480 --> 00:24:19,520 think there's a few a few things around communicating actually that the 287 00:24:19,520 --> 00:24:23,200 helpful to bear in mind so the first is something that's true for any 288 00:24:23,200 --> 00:24:27,080 communication really is to understand that people are coming to a conversation 289 00:24:27,080 --> 00:24:30,960 with different background and level of understanding to you and and also these 290 00:24:30,960 --> 00:24:36,760 some different perceptions around nuclear as well and so initially I would say 291 00:24:36,760 --> 00:24:40,960 just always lead with the positives because I think they really do speak 292 00:24:40,960 --> 00:24:44,600 for themselves and that they're not necessarily things that are well understood 293 00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:47,920 a common mistake particularly if you work in the nuclear industry is to assume 294 00:24:47,920 --> 00:24:53,000 for example that people know that nuclear is low carbon coal and gas aren't and 295 00:24:53,000 --> 00:24:56,000 if we're going to reduce carbon emissions and tackle climate change then 296 00:24:56,000 --> 00:25:01,000 then nuclear can play a really important role in that that's you know a really 297 00:25:01,000 --> 00:25:06,960 good point to lead on I think other kind of main benefits of nuclear are the fact 298 00:25:06,960 --> 00:25:10,200 that it is proven and it's it's large-scale and it's something that's 299 00:25:10,200 --> 00:25:17,760 been operating in the UK and around the world for decades now in terms of then 300 00:25:17,760 --> 00:25:22,520 some of the more common questions that we get asked around nuclear I think it's 301 00:25:22,520 --> 00:25:27,600 just making sure that and responses are always fact-based always very balanced 302 00:25:27,600 --> 00:25:32,720 and and generally you know that can can have a very positive effect on the 303 00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:37,560 perception that people have of technology yeah being fact-based is really a 304 00:25:37,560 --> 00:25:41,800 very strong point you have there and this brings me to the last question like 305 00:25:41,800 --> 00:25:46,600 what advice would you give to someone wanting to pursue on the side it about 306 00:25:46,600 --> 00:25:53,520 a career similar to yours yeah I mean in terms of advice I think I'd say you know 307 00:25:53,520 --> 00:25:59,440 if you're looking for variety and an opportunity to sort of contribute to 308 00:25:59,440 --> 00:26:03,640 tackling climate change and achieving that zero then the nuclear industry and 309 00:26:03,640 --> 00:26:08,760 a more broadly the energy industry a great place to start a career there's 310 00:26:08,760 --> 00:26:14,520 roles ranging from you know engineering finance project management and more 311 00:26:14,520 --> 00:26:19,520 communications and advocacy tie roles so there really is something for everyone 312 00:26:19,520 --> 00:26:25,760 there and we're also going to need a lot more people if we're going to build the 313 00:26:25,760 --> 00:26:30,440 capacity that we're forecasting we will need in order to get to net zero in the 314 00:26:30,440 --> 00:26:35,320 future it's definitely not a small challenge so I would encourage anyone 315 00:26:35,320 --> 00:26:39,200 that is interested in this type of industry and that type of role to take 316 00:26:39,200 --> 00:26:42,600 a look and there are you know a huge number of opportunities out there 317 00:26:42,600 --> 00:26:46,960 because these are technologies that we're needing and are investing in and so 318 00:26:46,960 --> 00:26:51,080 that the industries are only going to grow cool that's really fantastic and 319 00:26:51,080 --> 00:26:57,000 very adept and rich in its contents so I really want to appreciate the time with 320 00:26:57,000 --> 00:27:03,000 you you've taught you've talked about so many aspects and I kind of feel that so 321 00:27:03,000 --> 00:27:07,640 many people listening to this podcast might want to like jump on the boat and 322 00:27:07,640 --> 00:27:12,000 begin to like look for opportunities to work in the nuclear industry because it's 323 00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:17,000 so well and clearly painted to be an exciting place to be in and to explore 324 00:27:17,000 --> 00:27:22,280 and also to live and prospect in so I really want to appreciate the time with 325 00:27:22,280 --> 00:27:26,240 you and I just want to ask you just one more question just one more one more 326 00:27:26,240 --> 00:27:30,720 one more class so I don't know like do you have any last words like people that 327 00:27:30,720 --> 00:27:35,000 are coming to COP26 like what are some exciting packs you have for them like 328 00:27:35,000 --> 00:27:40,800 do you think the people will be well I mean like what should be the expectation 329 00:27:40,800 --> 00:27:44,720 and you know and there is a great expectation from people coming from all 330 00:27:44,720 --> 00:27:49,760 around the world you know coming to your country like what what are the exciting 331 00:27:49,760 --> 00:27:56,720 things they should expect for example yeah I think you know COP26 is is very 332 00:27:56,720 --> 00:28:00,960 exciting it is it's been postponed a year but it's happening this year and it is 333 00:28:00,960 --> 00:28:04,400 an opportunity for all of these countries around the world to get together 334 00:28:04,400 --> 00:28:10,520 and look at what they agreed in 2015 on the Paris Agreement and keeping 335 00:28:10,520 --> 00:28:14,160 temperatures below two degrees and look at what further commitments they can 336 00:28:14,160 --> 00:28:17,320 make it's it's certainly border than nuclear and even the energy industry 337 00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:21,240 because it's about tackling climate change as a whole I think particularly 338 00:28:21,240 --> 00:28:25,160 for young people we know that the youth climate action has played a really big 339 00:28:25,160 --> 00:28:28,880 role in putting pressure on governments and driving some of the the decisions 340 00:28:28,880 --> 00:28:33,040 that are being made around how we can tackle climate change and the importance 341 00:28:33,040 --> 00:28:39,120 that this issue has for the general population in this in this age so I 342 00:28:39,120 --> 00:28:42,560 would say you know have a look at the local groups and that there's things like 343 00:28:42,560 --> 00:28:47,960 I know in the UK the YGN net zero needs nuclear campaign is a really great one 344 00:28:47,960 --> 00:28:51,400 to take a look at but there's also there will be local ones in different 345 00:28:51,400 --> 00:28:55,480 countries as well and just sort of add your voice to that and do what you can 346 00:28:55,480 --> 00:29:00,560 to sort of join in and make it clear that tackling climate change is a priority 347 00:29:00,560 --> 00:29:06,400 that we want governments to look at. Cool so make it clear climate change is what we 348 00:29:06,400 --> 00:29:11,200 must look at COP26 is upon us the Hinkley point sees under construction 349 00:29:11,200 --> 00:29:16,520 size where we hopefully follow suit the resources that has helped you has so so 350 00:29:16,520 --> 00:29:22,320 so so so so enriching and the nuclear renewables combination is a very great 351 00:29:22,320 --> 00:29:27,080 one that we must look at and I think there is a very great future for nations 352 00:29:27,080 --> 00:29:30,680 to collaborate and see the future together so that they can all work 353 00:29:30,680 --> 00:29:35,480 together to achieve in a common goal and I really want to thank you immensely for 354 00:29:35,480 --> 00:29:40,720 featuring on this episode of AFRINUC podcast Claire Togos thank you so much 355 00:29:40,720 --> 00:29:47,040 and I hope and I'm looking forward to having you again. Yes and lovely speaking to you 356 00:29:47,040 --> 00:30:12,440 thanks very much for having me.