The French-owned energy firm behind the scheme to build a new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point in Somerset reported a profit in the UK of £1.12billion for 2022, up from a loss of £21million in 2021.

The improvement in financial fortunes of EDF in the UK is due to increased prices for the electricity it generates from nuclear and wind power.

However, its UK consumer energy supply arm lost more than £200million, and the group as a whole lost £4.44billion, largely as a result of the price cap the French government put on the retail price of energy which forced it to sell at below cost price.

EDF supplies gas and electricity to around five million households in the UK. It is mostly owned by the French government, and is about to become fully nationalised.

It benefited from a rise in wholesale prices for electricity prices during 2022, without seeing a big rise in costs of nuclear and wind power generation, unlike companies that use gas to power generators which have seen a big cost increase.

EDF pointed to its investment of more than £2.6billion in 2022 in its nuclear, renewables and customer businesses. It said its planned investment in the UK across 2023-25 is over £13billion, largely in Hinkley Point C, with around £2billion due to be invested in the existing nuclear fleet and renewables projects.

Peter Ruddick, the BBC’s business editor, commented: “Whichever way you slice and dice the numbers, some campaigners say these profits - coming at the same time as people are struggling to pay their household bills - show the system is broken and that the government response is too little, too late.”

Luc Rémont, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of EDF, said: “The 2022 results were significantly affected by the decline in our electricity output, and also by exceptional regulatory measures introduced in France in difficult market conditions.

“Despite all the challenges, EDF actively focused on service and support for all its residential and business customers, and made every endeavour to ensure the best generation fleet availability for the winter period. All the Group’s employees deserve praise for their dedication and great resilience in a difficult environment. 2022 also confirmed the new impetus for nuclear in France, and accelerated expansion for renewable energies.”

Electricity generation is scheduled to start at Hinkley Point C in June 2026, with the cost of the project estimated at between £22billion and £23billion.