Floreat Britannia in the era of AI Opinion The bottleneck to progress isn’t engineering, it’s an absurd inability to consider trade-offs that has led to decisions like spending £140m to save the life of a single salmon. AI is about to change all that, says Samuel Albanie May Britain flourish. I mean this unironically. To say this in early 2026, however, is to [...]
Laing O’Rourke: Heathrow Terminal Five builder doubles profit Business Laing O’Rourke, the construction giant behind Heathrow’s Terminal Five, more than doubled its profit during its latest financial year. The business has posted a pre-tax profit of £41.5m for the 12 months to 31 March, 2025, up from the £18.1m it reported for the prior year. The profit comes after Laing O’Rourke lost £288m in [...]
US giant Apollo to back Hinkley Point C with £4.5bn loan Energy US private capital group Apollo Global will back the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station with a £4.5bn loan, according to reports. The loan will be provided as unsecured debt to EDF, the French state-owned energy firm delivering the project, at an interest rate of just under seven per cent, sources told the FT. While [...]
EDF’s two nuclear plants should be negotiated as one, French minister says April 25, 2025 EDF’s two nuclear construction schemes at Hinkley Point and Sizewell C should be treated as one financial venture in negotiations, according to France’s energy minister. Marc Ferracci told the FT he had held discussions with the UK’s energy minister Ed Miliband at the sidelines of a conference in London on Thursday. “France and EDF are [...]
Infrastructure boom lifts Balfour Beatty, Kier Group and Costain March 14, 2025 London-listed construction firms Balfour Beatty, Kier Group, and Costain, have all reported robust results this week as the UK’s increasing prioritisation of major infrastructure projects starts to life the sector. Their combined order books now exceed more than £30bn and shareholders stand to benefit. All three of the companies hiked their dividends and shareholder returns alongside their [...]
Balfour Beatty shares slump as veteran chief Leo Quinn steps down March 5, 2025 Shares in Balfour Beatty slumped on Wednesday after veteran chief executive Leo Quinn announced plans to step down. Quinn departs following a more than 10-year stint leading the UK’s biggest contractor, during which time he significantly reduced debt and put the company on the path to profitable growth. Shares fell more than four per cent [...]
Auditor says EDF should push back decision on Sizewell C investment January 14, 2025 EDF should not make a final investment decision on the Sizewell C nuclear project until it has reduced exposure to its sister development, Hinkley Point C, according to France’s state auditor. In comments published on Tuesday, the Cour des comptes also said the French nuclear company should not take on new nuclear developments at home [...]
Treasury chief unveils new infrastructure body after HS2 fiasco October 10, 2024 The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) will bring oversight of UK infrastructure under "one roof."
Why we bought a decommissioned nuclear power station August 30, 2024 Seventy years since a Brit first split the atom, it’s time to re-energise our nuclear industry and reclaim leadership in the technology of the future, says Lord Grade Down an unassuming country lane in Gloucestershire, out of the market town of Berkeley and toward the Severn Estuary, lies the site where Britain’s next nuclear power [...]