The UK is likely to only have one nuclear new build and it will not be in west Cumbria, according to the man in charge of a former investor in the local project.

Alistair Phillips-Davies, chief executive officer of SSE, has said he believes that only Hinkley Point in Somerset is likely to be built. SSE had a 25 per cent stake in NuGen, which it sold in 2011.

He has doubt about the proposals to build a power station at Moorside, near Sellafield, which have been put forward by NuGen, describing the project as "tricky".

Mr Philips-Davies made the comments following the difficulties which have been faced by Japanese giant Toshiba, which has a 60 per cent stake in NuGen and is set to take full control.

The Japanese giant is forecast to make a £6.5bn loss for the last year and has expressed "substantial doubt" about its ability to continue as a going concern. Its woes stem mainly from its former American nuclear division Westinghouse Electric.

In January the company announced its US subsidiary, Westinghouse Electric, which was originally part of BNFL, may have overpaid - by several billion dollars - for another nuclear construction and services business. Since then Westinghouse has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the USA.

NuGen has since announced a "strategic review" of the Moorside project.

Toshiba has insisted it remains committed to Moorside - with an intention to sell its stake in the future - but its financial situation has prompted fears over the development's future.

Mr Philips-Davies told the Reuters news agency "just looking from the outside, it (Moorside) looks tricky" and that it might affect plans for a plant in Wylfa, north Wales, which Hitachi are involved with.

He added: "Toshiba looks like it has a lot of problems and whether Hitachi will view that as meaning that they do not want to have a go either, I think that is quite likely. I would not expect them to get done any time soon,"

At the time Mr Philips-Davies said that SSE "may become involved again".

NuGen declined to comment.