CUMBRIAN businesses are set to cash in on the decision to build the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in Somerset.

And the go-ahead has delivered a boost to NuGen’s plans for a nuclear power station at Moorside, Sellafield.

Ministers confirmed yesterday that Hinkley Point would go ahead following a “new agreement” with the French energy firm EDF.

They said they had imposed “significant new safeguards” for future foreign investment in critical infrastructure.

EDF had made its final investment decision only for the prime minister to announce in July that she wanted to review the details.

Cumbria’s nuclear sector is well placed to win work at Hinkley Point.

James Fisher Nuclear, in Egremont, said in March that it hopes “to provide services to the UK’s nuclear new-build sector once this moves forward.” And Bendalls Engineering in Carlisle signed a "memorandum of understanding" as long ago as 2012 with a view to it supplying pressure vessels to Hinkley Point.

The two reactors are scheduled to begin operating in 2025.

Meanwhile, NuGen is weighing up the implications of the Hinkley Point announcement for its its own plans for a nuclear power station at Moorside.

Tom Samson, NuGen’s chief executive, welcomed the government's decision. He said: “The news is positive for the UK nuclear new build market, where developers such as NuGen are investing heavily in delivering the next generation of low carbon power.

"It demonstrates the viability of new nuclear investment in the UK and is welcome evidence of the UK government’s commitment to new nuclear as an essential part of the energy mix.

“Hinkley Point C is the start of the nuclear new build renaissance in the UK, of which NuGen are an integral part."

NuGen, owned by Toshiba and ENGIE, wants to build three Westinghouse AP1000 reactors at Moorside. These would have a combined capacity of up to 3.8GW gross, enough to power six million homes.

Up to 6,000 people would work on site during construction, and 1,000 when the power plant is operational.