Heidelberg Materials UK has installed the first on-site batching plant for nuclear-grade concrete at the Sizewell C construction site in Suffolk.
The plant is already producing concrete for a cut-off wall being built with the Civil Works Alliance (CWA). The wall is intended to create a watertight barrier around the perimeter of the future power station.
Once complete, the barrier will allow about 4 million m3 of earth to be excavated for construction of Sizewell C’s two 1.6GW reactor units.
Heidelberg said it was the first company in the UK certified to produce nuclear-grade concrete to BS EN 19443. Concrete manufactured for the Sizewell C works will also comply with the standard.
The British Standards Institution says BS EN 19443 sets requirements for organisations in the nuclear energy supply chain that provide products and services important to nuclear safety, using ISO 9001:2015.
The CWA comprises Balfour Beatty, Bouygues Travaux Publics, Laing O’Rourke and Sizewell C.
Heidelberg Materials UK major projects director Sean Hunter said: “Our involvement at Sizewell builds on our expertise in supplying high-quality materials to Hinkley Point C through intelligent replication.
“At its height we employed over 80 people on the Somerset site, but at Sizewell this could reach 200.
“The level of our involvement at Sizewell reinforces our leading position in the growing nuclear sector and means we are uniquely placed to help deliver the UK’s low-carbon energy infrastructure.”