A major step has been taken towards a new nuclear power station at Moorside, West Cumbria, that will create at least £10bn worth of investment and thousands of jobs.

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has agreed key commercial terms with Toshiba and its partner GDF Suez to extend a land option agreement that reaffirms the consortium's commitment to build three reactors at Moorside.

The reactors, to come online from 2024, will deliver 3.4GW of new nuclear capacity, enough to power up to six million homes.

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It is estimated that the project will result in 14,000 jobs over the construction period for the three reactors, including peak on-site employment of more than 6,000 people. In the operational phase, the three reactors will sustain around 1,000 permanent jobs over the course of the reactors' lifetimes.

Prime Minister David Cameron said: "We can announce the huge investment being made by Toshiba and Westinghouse – over £200 million – into the rebuilding of the British nuclear industry, specifically in the North West of our country, in a project that could provide as many as 14,000 jobs during the construction phase, and many thousands of jobs ongoing, as well as providing low-carbon, base load electricity for Britain. This is a symbol of the growing relationship between Britain and Japan."

(CD)