Hinkley Point C - a boost for jobs and science

Our Hinkley Point C new nuclear power station won’t just deliver the low carbon electricity needed to power six million homes, as vital as that is.

As one of the biggest construction projects in Europe, it will create a huge number of jobs across a range of sectors.

25,000 job opportunities

In the course of building the UK’s first new nuclear power station in a generation, 25,000 different roles will be filled on the project, with almost 6,000 people on site together at the busiest time.

Our ambition is to create 1,000 new apprenticeships with our partners over the lifetime of the build, helping to close the UK’s engineering skills gap.

And that’s all on top of the 900 people who will operate the power station once it’s up and running.

Our multi-million pound investment in and commitment to education and skills will help get more kids interested in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects from earlier ages – making sure we’ve also got the next generation of engineers in the pipeline.

That’s good news for us.  We’ve also got plans for new nuclear power stations at Sizewell in Suffolk and Bradwell in Essex, so we’ll need their skills.

Building the UK’s skills capacity

It’s also good news for the UK, because many of the thousands of people working at Hinkley over the next decade will take their skills to other projects, building the railways, runways, super-sewers and other infrastructure that the UK desperately needs.

And many more of these people will help British businesses win nuclear and other supply chain contracts all over the world.  What starts in Somerset could end in Sydney or Singapore.

Our investment in training apprentices, employees and partners

So we’re investing in our own centre of excellence at the historic Cannington Court, a little over six miles from Hinkley Point.

Cannington Court is where we will train a new generation of EDF Energy employees and partners, and where we innovate with our academic and industry colleagues.

Many of those who deliver Hinkley Point C will start their careers just down the road at Bridgwater College.  In fact, a cohort of steelfixing apprentices has already graduated and begun work with our contractor Laing O’Rourke.

Overall, we’ve invested almost £15 million in education, training, and new facilities in Somerset, which will help us offer jobs and training for thousands of people.

The Hinkley Point C project signals a fresh start for Britain’s nuclear new build industry, and we’re now all looking forward to getting started.