Not only the recent burning spats over Huawei and Beijing's introduction of a controversial security law in the former British colony of Hong Kong have added pressure to Sino-British ties, now the nuclear issue has come into play.
One of those raising the question of the pair's collaboration in the field is former Conservative Party leader Iain Duncan Smith, who has called on the British government to effectively reassess China's role in the country's nuclear future, alluding to ongoing projects.
"Our energy policy is in the hands of the Chinese", the MP said in a recent article published in The Telegraph, lamenting the second biggest economy's primary role in the nuclear domain:
"Just in that one sector, we have complete domination by China when we should be strategically reviewing it".
China General Nuclear Power (CGN), a top Chinese energy company, is currently working alongside France's EDF to construct a nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point, in southwest England that is due to be completed in 2025.
The pair are also awaiting formal approval for a new plant at Sizewell on the Suffolk coast in eastern England.
While CGN's prospective role in the aforementioned projects is minor, there is also another one, the Bradwell nuclear reactor in southeastern England, where the Chinese company is expected to enjoy a majority stake, although it hasn't yet made all of its intentions known.
One thing is certain though, the group is investing 3.8 billion pounds ($4.9 billion, 4.2 billion euros) and supporting thousands of jobs in the sector, according to AFP.
As per Steve Thomas, a professor of energy policy at the University of Greenwich, CGN's nuclear ambitions in Britain are "an important step" in visually demonstrating Chinese technology to the world.
"All CGN wanted from the UK was the prestige and endorsement", he told AFP.
With China the lead partner in the Bradwell project, Thomas said UK approval "will be a political decision".
Blocking the grand plant's construction would threaten CGN's involvement in Hinkley or Sizewell, he believes.
"It depends how angry the Chinese government is... and whether it wants to punish the UK", Thomas said, suggesting China's pulling the plug on joint ventures with Britain would turn out to be costly for the UK, citing the final bill for Hinkley estimated at roughly 22.5 billion pounds.
He warned that should China ditch Hinkley, a government bailout may be needed to salvage the project at large, as it is understood to be key to the state's long-term energy plans.
In particular, the government has voiced determination to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, using nuclear power to help meet the country's electricity needs. For the time being, the share of nuclear-produced energy in the country stands at around 20 percent, with the Cabinet focused on further maintaining the ratio and rebuilding old factories to this end if needed.
"New nuclear has an important role to play in providing reliable, low-carbon power as part of our future energy mix as we tackle climate change", the government said this week.
Britain's ambitions – to zero in on alternative energy production and nuclear - have of late received a boost from the Japanese giant Hitachi, who announced it was ready to relaunch a nuclear power project in northwest Wales, almost two years after the Wylfa Newydd development on Anglesey island was put on hold due to financial handicaps.
However, Japanese rival Toshiba, has not revised its 2018 decision to pull the plug on a nuclear power plant project in Cumbria, northwest England.
As for China, its role in the nascent low-carbon energy sector is still being reviewed and discussed, especially in light of the recent wrangling over protests in Hong Kong, when Britain offered citizenship to Hong Kong residents in the wake of Beijing’s security law. Another issue ,which has been on the table is Huawei: it was first granted limited access, to the UK's 5G networks, but then Britain backtracked, following discussions with Washington, which has been going to great lengths to talk its allies out of doing business with the Chinese smartphone maker citing national security reasons.
