Joseph Gallagher Limited (JGL) has provided a sneak peak of its latest microtunnel boring machine (MBM).
Dispatched from tunnelling equipment supplier Specialist Plant Associates, the MBM was hauled by a Volvo prime mover to the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station where it will be launched in March.
“Getting a machine of this scale to site takes careful planning, specialist lifting, and close coordination across multiple teams — from engineering and logistics to operations and safety,” JGL said in an online post.
The £35 billion (USD$47B) nuclear power station under construction in Somerset by Électricité de France (EDF) will feature two EPR reactors generating 3.2GW of low-carbon electricity for an estimated six million homes.
After some delays, unit 1 is expected to go online between 2029 and 2031.
At present, EDF operates 56 active nuclear reactors in France spread across 18 sites.
In related news, JGL recently confirmed a key breakthrough on a microtunnelling assignment in Bahrain.
