UK-based international infrastructure group Balfour Beatty announced that it has been awarded a contract to deliver the 400kV North and South overhead line project worth £214m for Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant.
Image: The contract forms a critical part of the Hinkley Point C connection scheme. Photo: Courtesy of Peter Mathijssen/FreeImages.com.
The contract forms a critical part of the Hinkley Point C connection scheme, linking the new nuclear reactor to the national grid.
It has been awarded through the Overhead Line Design and Build Framework of National Grid, and is one of the three contracts under the framework.
The infrastructure company said that securing the contract for 400kV North and South Overhead Line project marks the third major package of works for the company to deliver at Hinkley Point C.
Under the contract, Balfour Beatty is responsible for design, supply, install, test and commission a new overhead line spanning 48.4km and crossing through the Mendip Hills in Somerset, where the company is currently delivering cable works under a separate contract for National Grid.
Once completed, the new line is expected to connect Hinkley Point C with a new substation in Avonmouth, Bristol.
In 2015, the company, in a joint venture with NG Bailey had secured the nuclear power station’s electrical works package, followed by the tunneling and marine works package in 2017.
The company said it will utilize National Grid’s new T-Pylon design to improve efficiency, reliability and safety by reducing the need for the workforce to work at height.
Balfour Beatty rail and utilities business CEO Mark Bullock said: “Our extensive knowledge and unique capability in delivering major complex Overhead Line schemes, makes us ideally positioned to play a key role in helping to deliver the first nuclear power station to be built in the UK for more than 20 years.
“We look forward to working with National Grid to successfully and safely deliver low-carbon electricity for around six million homes across the UK.”
The works at Hinkley Point C are expected to start this month, with completion expected in summer 2025. The project is expected to employ a workforce of over 150 people during peak construction.