The company which owns Didcot Power Station has rejected the idea of a nuclear plant on its site.

Industrial areas in Didcot and Harwell are two possible places for the UK's next generation of nuclear power plants, according to a Government paper published last week.

The report into potential sites for nuclear plants was researched by leading energy experts Jackson Consulting, for the Department of Trade and Industry.

But energy provider RWE npower, which owns Didcot Power Station, said it had no intention of going nuclear, or selling its coal-fired Didcot 'A' station when it closes in 2015.

Last week, report author Ian Jackson tipped Didcot's coal-fired power station rather than the former nuclear research centre at nearby Harwell for an Oxfordshire site.

The nuclear expert said: "Would it surprise me if a nuclear power station was built at Didcot? No, it wouldn't.

"I think from an economic prospective, it has a number of attractions.

"It is not impossible that the Harwell site itself could be used. If you look at the resources Oxfordshire offers, you see there is a good, experienced labour force. Harwell was one of the best nuclear research establishments in the world.

"But Didcot does look the more logical industrial choice."

The report urges the Government to use the sites of existing nuclear power for new plants - particularly Hinkley Point, Sizewell, Bradwell and Dungeness.

Didcot emerged as a possible place because the power station is due to close in 2015, leaving cooling towers and a skilled labour force.

The town is considered under a second tier of options, offering "key opportunities for nuclear development".

But RWE npower said it had no plans to go nuclear.

A spokesman said: "We have no intention of developing the site for a nuclear power station.

"The land is privately owned by us and it is not our intention to sell it.

"There are existing nuclear plants which are due to close down at the same time at Didcot which are better suited to nuclear power stations."

A final decision on whether the Government will build more nuclear plants will be taken in October - with any decision on sites a long way off.

But Trade and Industry Secretary Alistair Darling said it would be a profound mistake to rule out nuclear energy, given the pressure on North Sea oil and gas supplies.