By Ian Mean

Business West Gloucestershire director

In just a few weeks time, Gloucestershire could be celebrating a major industrial and energy breakthrough with the announcement that our region’s bid to site the UK’s first prototype £220 million fusion plant on the Severn Estuary has been successful.

I haven’t got a government crystal ball but I believe the Severn Edge bid led by the Western Gateway Partnership is destined to be awarded to the two decommissioned former nuclear sites at Oldbury in South Gloucestershire and Berkeley in Gloucestershire.

And despite the Prime Minister’s resignation and the political paralysis now engulfing government, I still think that this momentous decision for Gloucestershire, the South West and South Wales is still on the cards to be announced very soon.

I think it could now come early in September after the naming of our new Prime Minister on September 5.

Why do I think this?

I have just seen a letter from Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng to Greg Clark, MP who is chair of the Science and Technology Committee, which gives me hope of an early decision on the siting of STEP(Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production).

That letter says: “Minister Freeman (Energy minister George Freeman) and I plan to review the case in July, after which I will make my final decision. Intend to announce the selected site as soon as possible in the Autumn”.

This fusion project is truly groundbreaking.

It is designed to harness the power of the sun and is the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority’s flagship called STEP or Spherical Tokamak for Energy Programme.

Fusion has been described as having the potential to become the ultimate low carbon energy source recreating the reaction that takes place with the sun.

The impact of a successful bid has the potential of creating over 30 000 skilled jobs in the long term and will greatly enhance the career options for our young people in a whole range of engineering and digital skills.

Having worked alongside the Western Gateway team and our local councils and MPs for the last two years, I am confident STEP will be coming to this region.