EDF - Hinkley Point

EDF Energy will continue to engage with the local community about our detailed proposals for Hinkley Point C in the lead up to and beyond submission of our application to the Infrastructure Planning Commission.

Since Stage 2, we have undertaken a review of the construction profile for the Hinkley Point C project taking into account progress on building Flamanville 3 in Normandy, France (where EDF Energy is constructing a European Pressurised Water Reactor (EPR) of the same design as that proposed for Hinkley Point C) as well as experience from other nuclear power station project around the world. This review has caused us to increase our estimate of the peak construction workforce from 5,000 to 5,600 workers.

We are working with Jobcentre Plus to establish an employment brokerage scheme to help those living in Somerset to find out about and apply for vacancies. Subject to the relevant consents and approvals being granted, we have also committed to invest in skills training by providing:

- £3m for the Energy Skills Centre at Bridgwater College
- £1.5m to create a new Construction Skills Centre at Bridgwater College
- £1.6m to West Somerset College to facilitate training to match the needs of the project.

We will also be increasing the number of apprenticeships we offer over the next few years.

The Oxford Institute for Sustainable Development has estimated that the Hinkley Point C project will deliver £100m of economic benefit for the regional economy during every year of construction and £40m per year during the 60-year operation of the power station.

EDF Energy is working closely with the Somerset Chamber of Commerce and Into-Somerset, the County Council’s inward investment organisation, to ensure that opportunities for local businesses are maximised.

We have been able to do this because the response to our earlier consultations shows that there is a lot of interest locally in providing accommodation, including from landlords and private individuals who would like to rent rooms to construction workers.

As a result, we expect just over 2,000 of the non-home-based workforce to be living in existing local accommodation at the peak of construction. This has helped us to reduce the requirement for campus bedspaces.

Our surveys confirm that there is sufficient accommodation within the local area to meet the demand for local accommodation from the workforce without displacing tourists or putting pressure on local housing.

Operationally this is the best location for a campus because it will enable workers to get to site quickly and easily, it has transport benefits and is likely to be a popular option for workers. However, we have reduced the size of the on-site campus from 700 to 510 bedspaces in response to concerns expressed by local people during the Stage 2 consultation.

The campuses themselves are not suitable for conversion into housing due to their high density and shared amenities. However, we are exploring whether we can work with developers and local authorities to facilitate local housing development and property refurbishment. This would not remove the need for campus accommodation but could usefully add to the supply of housing in the local area and meet the needs of some of the workforce, e.g. workers bringing their families.

We are developing a comprehensive set of mitigation measures to address areas where our development may have an impact on the local area or local services. These include impacts on: health services; transport infrastructure; emergency services and security; and the environment. In total, we expect to invest about £100m into the regional economy in infrastructure improvements and a further £200m on specific mitigation measures to minimise the impact of the development on the local community.

Our mitigation package will include a Community Fund to be spent locally on a range of community issues, chosen by communities affected by our development and the local authorities. We are proposing to increase the size of the Community Fund promised in Stage 2 from £1m to £20m.

EDF Energy will require the highest standards of behaviour by construction workers at Hinkley Point C. We are putting in place a Code of Conduct setting out the standards we expect of our workforce that will be imposed through all the main contracts let by EDF Energy. This will be vigorously enforced.

Since our Stage 2 consultation we have held extensive discussions with potential contractors on a wide range of issues, including the shift patterns needed to facilitate efficient construction. We have also taken account of the latest experience from the ongoing construction of an EPR nuclear power station in Flamanville in France. These discussions have led to the change in shift patterns.

Ongoing discussions show that we will need to provide flexibility for workers and contractors. Some contractors will operate a rolling shift pattern in which every other weekend operates with a full shift pattern on Saturdays and Sundays with the following weekend being non-working (aside from maintenance activities). This will provide a regular opportunity for non-home-based workers to return to their families.

EDF Energy has committed to ensure that every other weekend, aside from small-scale maintenance or preparatory activities, there will be no construction activity on-site on Saturday afternoons or all day on Sundays.

In Stage 2 we noted that at key stages in construction we would need to operate a night shift. Further discussions with contractors show it may be necessary to have an overnight shift to enable the smooth operation of the construction programme e.g. to maintain the programme or prepare equipment. These overnight activities will be concentrated in and around the power station development site to the north of Green Lane, will involve fewer workers than day shifts and fewer transport movements. We will aim to reduce the off-site impact of night lighting as far as possible.

Our analysis of how workers will travel to the Hinkley Point C site during construction suggests that:

- 59% will use park and ride and be bussed to the main site.
- 38% will travel directly to the main site by dedicated bus/coach
- 3% will travel directly to the main site by car.

The proposed park and ride sites have been located to maximise the number of workers using them on their journey to work based on where we expect locally based construction workers to travel from.

The sites at junctions 23 and 24 of the M5 are designed to serve workers travelling from the north and the south. The Cannington site is designed to serve workers travelling from Bridgwater, while the Williton site will serve workers travelling from Minehead and settlements to the west of Hinkley Point.

We know from our engagement with local people that many would like to see a Bridgwater bypass provided as part of the Hinkley Point C project. At Stage 2, we said that we didn’t consider a bypass would be necessary. Our work since Stage 2 has confirmed this interim conclusion and our view remains that we should not build a Bridgwater bypass because:

- It would run over environmentally sensitive land
- The land is in the floodplain
- Government policy is clearly against building new roads
- A bypass would attract more traffic in the immediate vicinity of the Hinkley Point site and transfer parking pressure to sensitive rural areas
- A bypass would add years to the project timetable and potentially delay the power station which is urgently needed to meet national priorities.

A Cannington bypass remains part of our plans and we will also introduce traffic calming measures in the village. The bypass will remove traffic from the village and reduce the impact of construction traffic. Our detailed proposals for the bypass have been refined since the Stage 2 consultation to take into account the views expressed by local people.

Subject to ongoing discussions with the highway authorities we are proposing a range of highway and safety improvements including at:

- A39 Broadway/A38 Taunton Road junction, Bridgwater
- A38 Bristol Road/Wylds Road, Bridgwater
- Wylds Road/The Drove junction, Bridgwater
- Northern Distributor Road/Chilton Street Junction, Bridgwater
- Cross Rifles (Cannon) Roundabout, Bridgwater
- A39 Bath Road, Bridgwater
- M5 junction 23
- M5 junction 24
- A39/B3339 Sandford Hill junction between Bridgwater and Cannington
- Traffic calming in Cannington
- Washford Cross roundabout, west of Williton
- C182, Farringdon Hill horse crossing
- C182 parking controls
- C182 junction improvements at Clayland Corner

EDF Energy has recently applied for the construction and operation of a temporary jetty at Hinkley Point C. This will be used for the import of materials used for construction. We also propose to refurbish Combwich Wharf to enable large and heavy equipment to be delivered by sea as close as possible to the Hinkley Point C site.

Even in the worst-case scenario, over 40% of materials required to construct the power station, the on-site campus and Combwich Wharf will be delivered by sea. This is based on a conservative assumption that all materials, other than 80% of materials for concrete and the largest abnormal indivisible loads, will be delivered by road.

In practice there is scope to encourage greater use of sea deliveries and EDF Energy will aim to achieve this by selecting suppliers who can transport materials efficiently and economically by water.

For HGV deliveries, we are providing freight management facilities near both junction 23 and 24 of the M5. These facilities will release HGVs onto the local highway network in a controlled manner to avoid peak periods, wherever possible, using identified HGV routes.

We still plan to deliver very large loads and other freight by water using Combwich Wharf. However, in response to local concerns expressed during the Stage 2 consultation we have made significant changes to our plans for this area:

- We are no longer planning fabrication facilities
- There will be no buildings for storage on-site (goods will be stored in containers or outside)
- No provision will be made for bus parking
- There will be fewer security, welfare and administrative buildings
- The size of the proposed site has been reduced
- A new access road linking the Wharf to the laydown area will be created
- A drainage channel will be provided to connect to the River Parrett.

We have made a small number of material changes. The key ones are:

- The size of the on-site campus has reduced by 190 bedspaces, from 700 to 510 spaces
- We have developed our landscaping phasing plans close to the southern boundary
- A system for returning fish to the sea is now included
- We may need additional provision for extreme rainfall on the site
- Junction details for the emergency access road near the southern boundary have been set out.

Our objective is to submit our development consent order application to the IPC later in 2011.

Legislation is currently before Parliament that would abolish the IPC and replace it with a Major Infrastructure Planning Unit, part of the Planning Inspectorate.

The legislation is not expected to come into force until spring 2012 by which time EDF Energy expects to have submitted its application to the IPC. The Government has said that it will introduce transitional arrangements to ensure that applications already submitted to the IPC are not delayed by this change.

These applications, if approved, are intended to help us to meet the Government’s objective of deploying new nuclear power stations as soon as possible to ensure greater security of our energy supplies.

EDF Energy has submitted an application for Site Preparation Works to West Somerset Council. The application, which has yet to be determined, will enable us to prepare the main site for development and includes: removal of existing hedgerows and woodland; drainage works; re-routing of underground services and rights of way; and site access and internal road.

We have also submitted an application to the Marine Management Organisation for a temporary jetty to bring in bulk materials by sea for the construction process. If approved, the jetty will take 80% of materials needed for concrete off local roads.