Projects

Support to Hinkley Point C, Somerset, U.K.

Bringing the U.K. its first new nuclear power station in two decades

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Construction work at Hinkley Point C

EDF is building two U.K.-EPR reactors at Hinkley Point C, a 3,200 MWe power station in Somerset that will meet approximately 7% of the U.K.’s electricity needs. Now under construction, this is the first new nuclear power station to be built in the U.K. for over 20 years and is scheduled to begin operating in 2025.

Hinkley Point C will provide low-carbon electricity for around six million homes, create thousands of jobs and bring lasting benefits to the U.K. economy. It’s expected to make a major contribution to the U.K.’s move to reduce carbon emissions. The electricity generated by its two EPR reactors will offset nine million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year, or 600 million tonnes over its 60-year lifespan*.

Jacobs is supporting EDF with wide-ranging professional technical and project management services. Our UKAS-accredited Inspection Validation Center is the project’s sole supplier for independent verification of ultrasound inspections on safety critical components.

  • Hinkley Point
  • Construction on a nuclear site
  • Construction at Hinkley Point C Unit 1

The first new nuclear power station to be built in the U.K. in over 20 years, EDF’s Hinkley Point C in Somerset is expected to make a major contribution to the U.K.’s ambition to reduce carbon emissions.

It will provide low-carbon electricity for around six million homes, create thousands of jobs and bring lasting benefits to the U.K. economy. Jacobs is supporting with wide-ranging professional technical and project management services and in a program delivery role.

To date, we’ve provided site design works for the station seawall and associated defenses, the construction material jetty and plant delivery wharf, seawater intake and outfall heads, the U.K. context for non-U.K. plant design and supporting roads and networks.

In 2015, we also became Delivery Partner for program, project and construction management services for the earthworks, main civil works, marine works and heat sink systems on the site. In 2019,the project completed the first reactor’s base and the 760-meter seawall, as well as starting the tunnelling on the three water cooling intakes deep beneath the Severn Estuary.

  • 6 M

    homes will be powered by Hinkley Point C's low-carbon electricity

  • 9 M

    tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year will be offset as a result of electricity generated by its two EPR reactors

Planning Regulations and Generic Design Assessment

In the early project planning stages, we supported EDF with the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) and Development Consent Order (DCO) for the EPR.

For the GDA application for design acceptance from the U.K. regulators, we provided technical expertise in areas such as human factors analysis, safety case analysis, structural integrity, civil engineering, instrumentation and control and regulatory requirements. The DCO was one of the first awarded under the U.K.’s new regime for permitting major infrastructure projects. We provided far-ranging support, from the technical input into the environmental impact assessment, to the application with expert witness testimony at the planning enquiry. We continue to work with the EDF team to achieve regulatory approvals for construction through the preparation of the pre-construction safety process.

Justification of critical elements of the design meant that minimal changes were needed. We also provided an integrated approach to site data for use in site planning, permitting and nuclear licensing and helped to present a positive and comprehensive view of the environmental impact to local communities and stakeholders during public consultation.