Financing for the 3.2GW Sizewell C nuclear plant has been criticised by the UK National Audit Office, which says the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model and £700M of direct government investment place more risk on taxpayers and bill-payers than Contracts for Difference used on other low‑carbon projects. The NAO estimates consumer benefits will not exceed costs until after 2060, well beyond the station’s planned early‑2030s commissioning. For civil and nuclear contractors, the findings signal prolonged political and regulatory scrutiny of cost overruns, schedule risk and allowable returns.

The UK government is introducing the Small Business Protections Bill (Commercial Payments Bill) to parliament, imposing a statutory 60‑day cap on payment terms for large firms and mandatory interest on late payments to smaller suppliers. The bill grants the Small Business Commissioner new powers to investigate, adjudicate and levy fines worth tens of millions of pounds on persistent late payers. For construction, a planned ban on cash retentions could significantly alter contract structures, cashflow management, and security arrangements for defects and incomplete works.

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has issued an emergency order requiring Midcontinent Independent System Operator and Consumers Energy to keep the J.H. Campbell coal-fired plant in West Olive, Michigan available through 16 August 2026 to address critical summer grid reliability risks. The 3-unit plant, originally slated for closure on 31 May 2025, has been run during peak demand and low wind/solar periods and was key in stabilising the grid during recent winter storms. DOE’s Resource Adequacy Report and NERC’s 2025 Long-Term Reliability Assessment both flag MISO as high risk, with DOE warning outage frequency could rise 100-fold by 2030 if firm capacity is retired too quickly.