Certas Energy has opened a centralised refuelling hub at Hinkley Point C as part of its contract to supply the site with the fuel it needs to construct one of the UK’s largest infrastructure projects.
The 24-hour centralised refuelling hub is the first of its kind to be built on the construction site of a nuclear power station, comprising three compartmentalised 125k-litre tanks dispensing red diesel, road diesel and AdBlue. The fuel farm will ensure security of supply to the site’s HGVs, buses and construction equipment – including Big Carl, the world’s largest crane.
Due to tight legislation that restricts vehicle access to the Hinkley Point C site, the fuel farm allows for more efficient refuelling and quicker access to fuel supply for vehicles and contractors. The hub has been designed to minimise disruption to the community and reduce congestion on local roads, as vehicles and machinery are no longer required to divert from the site to refuel.
As the UK’s leading independent supplier of fuel and lubricants, Certas Energy has a proven track record of building complex fuel installations from the ground up. The company currently operates over 20 HGV bunkering sites and 80 retail forecourts across the country, and provides fuel and lubricants solutions to some of the UK’s largest construction projects.
Site Construction Director at EDF Energy, Robert Jordan, commented: “Certas Energy’s expertise in bunkering facilities and experience in handling large-scale projects made them the partner of choice for this refuelling development. Nuclear new build requirements means that strict regulations and processes must be satisfied before any construction can take place on a site like Hinkley Point C.
“Certas Energy rose to the challenge and has delivered an innovative refuelling hub that puts compliance, safety and efficiency first. The dependable supply offered by the fuel farm will make refuelling quicker and easier for the vast range of vehicles, machinery and equipment operated by businesses on site each day.”
Andrew Barrie, Contracts Manager for Hinkley Point C at Certas Energy, added: “Hinkley Point C is construction on an awesome scale, and we’re proud to open this one of a kind bunkering facility on site. Not only will the hub ensure quicker access to fuel for construction contractors, it will power the transportation and logistics vehicles that are so integral to keeping Hinkley Point C moving.”
With over 4,700 workers, 34 tower cranes and 400 vehicles working on site every day, Hinkley Point C is one of Europe’s largest construction projects. The site will power six million homes and offsets nine million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year over its 60-year lifespan.
