Even as the British Government lays the ground for its upcoming Energy Bill that will principally aim to promote a low-carbon energy economy in the country, Japanese energy and engineering major Hitachi has completed the acquisition of Britain's Horizon nuclear project.

With this, Hitachi has gained ownership of two nuclear sites in the UK -- at Wylfa, Anglesey, and Oldbury - where it plans to build two to three 1,300 megawatt (MW) nuclear power plants each.

Hitachi has acquired the project from German utilities RWE and E.ON for a combined consideration of $1.11 billion and will now initiate discussions with the UK regulators to obtain the necessary approval to use Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) technology under the UK's Generic Design Assessment process. ABWR technology is the only advanced nuclear technology in operation in the world and is licensed for use in several countries including the US.

Hitachi is also in discussions to find a company that will operate the power plants after they are built. The company aims to get the first reactor operational by the mid-2020s.

Commenting on the acquisition, Masaharu Hanyu, Vice President and Executive Officer, CEO of Nuclear Systems and General Manager of Nuclear Systems System, Power Services Company, Power Systems Group, said in a company release that "Hitachi is committed to help UK achieve its vision of a secure, low-carbon and affordable energy supply. The acquisition of Horizon is a first step in this journey, which will see us strive to build a strong UK power production company and support the creation of thousands of highly skilled jobs in the UK's energy sector."

The nuclear power project is central to the British Government's efforts to modernise its power generation infrastructure which is fast ageing. The accent on nuclear power generation is also influenced the government's objective of promoting low-carbon energy. Towards this, the government expects that Horizon will house up to six nuclear power plants which will provide uninterrupted electricity to 14 million homes for a good 60 years.