Skip to main content

EDF readies Ovivo for contract signing upon final investment decision

By Hinkley Point C media team | Posted October 01, 2015

EDF Energy is today announcing Ovivo as preferred bidder in a contract worth over £10m as it prepares to make a final investment decision for the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station.

The contract will help secure jobs in the UK and provide a boost to the UK’s manufacturing sector.

Ovivo, a world-leading company in water treatment and waste water, has been awarded preferred bidder status for a contract to supply intake water filtration systems at the site. The equipment will be manufactured in the UK and engineered from Ovivo’s facilities in Colchester and Wolverhampton.

Last week it was announced that two preferred bidder contracts worth over £100m had been awarded to Rolls Royce and a Rolls Royce/Nuvia partnership. This followed the announcement in July of more preferred bidders to the Hinkley Point C project in contracts worth a total of more than £1.5billion.

In October 2013 EDF Energy announced the four main preferred bidders for engineering and construction:
 

  • Bouygues TP, Paris, France/Laing O’Rourke, Dartford - civil work contract

  • Costain, Maidenhead - marine work

  • Alstom, Paris, France - turbine generators

  • Areva, Paris, France - instrumentation and control, nuclear steam supply system and fuel
     

It is now estimated that contracts worth more than 60% of the construction cost for Hinkley Point C will be placed with UK firms, against an initial estimate of 57%.

EDF Energy and suppliers have been working together to create a supply chain ready to build the proposed power station, which will restart new nuclear construction in Britain after a 20 year pause. Any contract signings are subject to a final investment decision.

The proposed power station will provide reliable, low carbon electricity to meet 7% of UK demand. It will provide 25,000 employment opportunities on-site during its construction, including 1,000 apprenticeships.

Ken Owen, Hinkley Point C Commercial Director, said: “Hinkley Point C will be built by world-leading experts in the manufacturing and construction sectors and as such we are pleased to welcome Ovivo to the HPC industrial partnership. Together, our suppliers and partners will take us on an industrial and human adventure which ultimately will help the UK meet its future need for reliable low carbon electricity.”

Marc Barbeau, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ovivo, said: “We are delighted to be selected by EDF Energy as their preferred partner for the seawater filtration system at the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station. Through Ovivo’s heritage brand Brackett Green®, we have a long association with the United Kingdom’s nuclear power plant industry and we are proud to be given this opportunity to contribute in the building of the next generation of nuclear plants in the United Kingdom.”

All parties are working so that a final investment decision can be taken at Hinkley Point C as soon as possible.


One of four 27m diameter drum screens used for the filtration of a total of around 140 tonnes per second of water, forming part of the Hinkley Point C cooling water intake system.

Related articles

Stacy Walker
September 08, 2026

We are Here to Listen: How to Get in Touch with Hinkley Point C

As part of the Hinkley Point C Community Relations team, one of the things I enjoy most about my role is getting out into local communities and talking to people. A question I am often asked is: “How do I actually get in touch with Hinkley Point C?” The good news is, there are lots of ways to contact us – and you don't have to wait for a formal meeting to get involved.
Jack Davies - Quality Assurance Apprentice
August 27, 2026

How is Hinkley Point C benefiting the local community?

Alongside Hinkley Point C’s vital role in providing the country with secure low-carbon electricity, I’m very proud of the significant benefits we provide to our local communities. Maximising the benefits of Hinkley Point C has been a long term collaborative effort, but one which I’m confident will also lead to much longer term opportunity for people and businesses across Somerset and the Sout West.
Parking at Brean Beach
August 14, 2026

Supporting Local Tourism - Free Beach Parking at Brean and Berrow this Summer

Hinkley Point C is helping to make a trip to the seaside a little more affordable this summer by providing free parking at both Brean and Berrow beach car parks. Available throughout the school holidays and into October, the initiative is part of Hinkley Point C’s support for tourism businesses in Brean. The initiative has already proved extremely successful with visitors to the beach more than double the number seen in July last year.