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Bilfinger UK has joined a major British industrial consortium to call on the Government to back Sizewell C, the proposed new nuclear power station on the Suffolk coast.

Thirty-two companies and organisations from all regions of the UK, including some of the biggest clean energy firms, have come together to urge the Government to give the major infrastructure project the green light.

The business, which is headquartered in Warrington and employs over 2,500 people, recently won two new contracts worth £350m to deliver the design, procurement, supplier management, fabrication and construction of high-quality pipework and specialist equipment for the new Hinkley Point C nuclear power station.

The Sizewell C Consortium also includes Atkins, Balfour Beatty Bailey, Cavendish Nuclear, Doosan Babcock, EDF, Jacobs, Laing O’Rourke, Mott MacDonald and Mace and is backed by some of the country’s biggest trade unions, including GMB, the Unite Union and Prospect.

The Consortium believes Sizewell C is a pre-packed stimulus project that will provide a major economic boost for the UK, worth approximately £14bn, and set the country on the road to a green recovery.

The Consortium intends to sign memorandum of understanding (MoU) with regions across the UK to guarantee British jobs and investment in the building of Sizewell C.

Up to 70 per cent of the contracts for the proposed plant will go to British-based businesses, securing the future of the nuclear supply chain and creating tens of thousands of jobs across the UK.

Sizewell C will provide 3.2GW of always-on clean energy, enough to power 6 million homes.

The planning application for the project was submitted to the Planning Inspectorate last month.

As a replica of Hinkley Point C in Somerset, Sizewell C is expected to benefit from significant savings in construction costs.

Early works, involving contracts worth up to £300m, could begin this year.

Approval of the project would be a major boost for the UK nuclear sector, which directly provides more than 60,000 highly skilled jobs, with another 160,000 jobs sustained across the wider supply chain.

However, thousands of these jobs will be lost without Government backing for Sizewell C soon, which would seriously undermine the UK’s nuclear delivery capability.

Phillip Maurer, Managing Director at Bilfinger UK, said:

“Sizewell C represents a potentially vital asset in helping to drive a green economic recovery and provide thousands of new jobs.

“We look forward to working with the consortium to ensure backing for the project, which will see the business continue to expand its operations across the UK, including the North West.”

Cameron Gilmour, Spokesperson for the Sizewell C Consortium, said:

“Britain has built a world beating nuclear industry supply chain which supports thousands of highly skilled jobs across the UK.

“The Sizewell C supply chain is ready and willing to help government with the green economic recovery.

“A firm commitment on the future of Sizewell C will help sustain the nuclear supply chain and can deliver significant benefits to the UK’s low carbon economic prosperity.”

More information on the Sizewell C Consortium can be found here.

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External URL: https://www.uk.bilfinger.com/media/news/articles/article/8066/