The containment building dome for the second unit of the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant in the UK was lifted into place, concluding major civil engineering work on the reactor buildings. The 245-tonne dome, nearly 47 meters wide and 14 meters tall, was hoisted onto the 44-meter-high structure using Big Carl, one of the world’s largest cranes.

Assembled from 38 prefabricated panels at an on-site factory, the dome will now undergo welding to create an airtight seal, followed by encasement in 7,000 tonnes of concrete. Construction of Hinkley Point C’s two 1,630 MWe EPR reactors began in December 2018 for unit 1 and a year later for unit 2. The unit 1 dome was installed in December 2023.

Despite delays during the Covid-19 pandemic, unit 2’s construction has benefited from unit 1’s experience, achieving 20-30% faster progress with 30% fewer workers and 40% more work completed. Prefabrication has reached 60%, and 300 tonnes of internal steel have been installed, compared to 10 tonnes for unit 1 at the same stage.

Stuart Crooks, CEO of Hinkley Point C, said: “Restarting the industry has been hard, but the second of our two identical units shows the big benefits of repeating an identical design. Build and repeat is the best way to build new nuclear with time savings already at 20-30%. All our experience and innovation will benefit Sizewell C from the start.”

Sizewell C, a planned replica of Hinkley Point C with two EPR reactors, will apply these efficiencies to reduce construction time and costs, building on the UK’s first new nuclear project in nearly 30 years.