A 551 Ton Nuclear Reactor Vessel Just Rolled Off the Line, Marking Another Milestone for the UK’s New Nuclear Build
The United Kingdom’s biggest energy project just crossed a major threshold.
Framatome has finished manufacturing the reactor pressure vessel for the second EPR unit at Hinkley Point C, one of the largest nuclear builds in Europe and a cornerstone of the UK’s long term energy strategy.
This single component is the heart of the reactor.
It is 13 meters long, weighs 551 tons, and was built at Framatome’s Saint Marcel plant in France. Once both reactors come online, the combined output is expected to deliver enough clean electricity to power six million homes.
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For a country wrestling with declining North Sea production, rising energy imports, and the need for stable baseload power, this is not just another engineering milestone.
It signals the return of nuclear as a strategic asset.
What Hinkley Point C Is Building
Hinkley Point C consists of two 1,630 MWe EPR reactors, each designed for an 80 year operating life. These next generation reactors are built for high efficiency, long term output, and reduced carbon intensity.
According to EDF, the project remains on a schedule where Unit 1 targets 2030 operation. Unit 2 is being assembled in parallel, following the same construction flow.
Steam Generators Arrive Next
Alongside the finished pressure vessel, the first two steam generators for Unit 2 have been formally received. Each generator stands 25 meters tall and weighs 520 tonnes. Their job is to transfer heat from the reactor coolant to the secondary system that drives the turbines.
EDF says these generators will be delivered to the Hinkley Point C site in 2026.
The first steam generator for the entire project arrived in 2024 and was installed in Unit 1 that summer.
Construction Continues in Layers
The build is progressing in structured phases.
Heavy components roll out as the containment buildings reach each required stage:
• Unit 1 construction began in 2018
• Unit 2 construction began in 2019
• Unit 1’s dome was installed in December 2023
• Unit 2’s dome was lifted into place last week
The completion of a containment dome is key. It signals the shift from civil engineering to full reactor assembly, which includes setting the pressure vessel and other heavy equipment.
Why This Matters for the Future of UK Energy
The UK government already approved Sizewell C, which will replicate the Hinkley Point C design. That decision was possible only because the supply chain, engineering teams, and manufacturing cadence created for Hinkley now exist. This creates a repeatable template for future reactors rather than having to reinvent the entire process each time.
Government analysts estimate that once Sizewell C is fully operational, it could save the electricity system around 2 billion pounds per year.
Nuclear, once sidelined, is clearly back at the center of long term planning.
The Bigger Picture
Globally, nations are rediscovering that stable energy is national security. Renewables matter, but they do not replace high density baseload power. Countries that want resilient grids and industrial capacity are rebuilding nuclear manufacturing lines and training new engineering cohorts.
Hinkley Point C is not just a British project.
It is part of a wider recalibration toward infrastructure that can support an AI intensive, electrified, and increasingly energy dependent economy.
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