Amentum has been selected to lead the design of marine and tunnelling works for the UK’s Sizewell C nuclear power station.
The contract, awarded by main contractor Civil Works Alliance (CWA), is for a three-year design project followed by seven years of design support for the nuclear plant in Suffolk. It has an estimated value of £22.3m for Amentum.
The scope of work will include the design of three 3.5km-long offshore tunnels, marine shafts and tunnel-to-shaft connections, marine heads, onshore galleries and connections to the main civil works, as well as a fish return system to protect marine wildlife.
Marine works are a critical aspect of the programme. To operate its cooling systems, Sizewell C’s two 1.6GW reactors will need enough water to fill 4,200 Olympic swimming pools every day.
Amentum senior vice-president Loren Jones said the company would draw on experience from the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station.
“We will bring proven nuclear design experience, replicating and enhancing lessons learned from Hinkley Point C, where we led equivalent scope. Our team – along with subcontractors Jacobs (responsible for major tunnelling design support) and ADDA (responsible for 3D reinforced concrete detailing) – brings proven expertise to the project. Working together again enables us to maintain continuity, leverage experience from Hinkley Point C to optimise the design, and reduce delivery risk on one of the UK’s most significant infrastructure projects,” said Jones.
CWA comprises Balfour Beatty, Bouygues Travaux Publics, and Laing O’Rourke, which are also currently working on Hinkley Point C in Somerset. Tunnelling for Hinkley Point’s fish return system was completed recently.
Preliminary construction work for Sizewell C began in January 2024.
