EDF's finance director quits over Hinkley Point costs, BBC says

The logo of France's state-owned electricity company EDF is seen on the company's headquarters in Paris, France. [Photo/Agencies]

France's EDF, which is leading a consortium including China General Nuclear Power Corporation to build a nuclear generating station at Hinkley Point in southwest England, said its finance director has quit, the BBC reported.

EDF is expected to announce by April how it will finance its 66.5 percent stake; last week France and the UK said they were still backing the project, following a meeting between UK Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Francois Hollande.

Thomas Piquemal stepped down because he was worried that EDF's finances could be jeopardised by the cost of the project, the broadcaster said.

CGN has agreed to pay a third of the 18 billion pounds cost of the project in return for a 33.5 percent stake.

The BBC said it understood EDF was seeking aid from the French government, which owns 84.5 percent of the French power company, to raise funding for its share.

To contact the reporter: chris@mail.chinadailyuk.com