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The world’s largest crane, Big Carl, installed the second 500-ton reactor vessel at the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant in England. The two-day operation, conducted by EDF, fitted the 13-meter piece with a clearance of just 40 millimeters on each side.
The world’s largest crane was back in action at the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant in southwest England. Nicknamed Big Carl, the equipment completed on Friday (May 29) a two-day lifting operation to install the project’s second reactor vessel, a 500-ton piece, with millimetric precision.
According to EDF Energy, responsible for the project, the 13-meter vessel was lowered onto its support ring with a clearance of just 40 millimeters on each side. The use of the world’s largest crane at this stage, instead of the temporary lifting system used in the first unit, would have saved space, time, and money in a project that accumulates delays and billion-dollar costs.
How the world’s largest crane fitted the reactor vessel
Big Carl is a Sarens SGC-250, considered the largest land-based crane on the planet: in its tallest configuration, it exceeds 250 meters in height and can lift up to 5,000 tons. It’s worth noting the precision: it is the world’s largest crane on land, as at sea, the title usually goes to crane vessels like the Sleipnir. Even so, it was this colossal machine that took on the lifting of the reactor vessel for the second unit.
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The operation took two days. The crane positioned the piece on an elevated platform next to the reactor building and inserted it through a 19.5-meter-high equipment hatch. Once inside the nuclear plant building, the 13-meter vessel was lifted and rotated to a vertical position by the internal polar crane and then lowered onto the support ring with a minimum margin of 40 millimeters on each side, a fit that required extreme coordination between the teams.
Why Unit 2 Advances Faster than Unit 1
In the first unit, the vessel had been installed with a temporary lifting system specially assembled for the task. This time, using the world’s largest crane simplified the process and, according to EDF, saved space, time, and money. For Simon Parsons, Hinkley Point C delivery director, the team did not just “copy and paste” what was done in Unit 1, but applied the experience to accelerate the work.
The numbers reinforce the statement. Unit 2 is being constructed 20% to 30% faster than Unit 1, with the same teams and an identical design. The reactor building is more advanced than the first unit was at the same stage, with more equipment and steel structures installed, the outer containment layer already in place, and the dome closed less than a year ago. EDF itself states that these learnings will benefit the future Sizewell C plant.
Where the Vessel Came From and What It Does
According to information from the Petronoticias portal, the reactor vessel for Unit 2 was manufactured by Framatome at its Saint-Marcel plant in Chalon-sur-Saône, eastern France. The component was completed at the end of November last year and delivered to the Hinkley Point C site in January this year. The Unit 1 vessel had left Framatome’s facility in Le Creusot, Burgundy, in December 2022, and was stored until being installed in December 2024.
Made of high-strength steel, this reactor vessel houses the core and internal components that support and stabilize the reactor, as well as guide the coolant flow and the movement of control rods. With the piece in place, EDF can continue installing the remaining equipment to close the primary circuit of the second unit of the nuclear plant.
Hinkley Point C: Delays, Costs, and What Comes Next
When completed, the two 1,630 MWe EPR reactors at Hinkley Point C are expected to generate enough low-carbon electricity for about six million homes, with an expected operation of up to 80 years. Construction of the first unit began in December 2018, and the second, a year later. The problem is the history of delays: Unit 1, initially expected by the end of 2025, was rescheduled to 2027 and then to a base scenario of 2030.
Costs have also skyrocketed. The estimate rose from 26 billion pounds to somewhere between 31 billion and 34 billion pounds, in 2015 values. Therefore, although the installation by the world’s largest crane is celebrated as an engineering milestone, the project remains under criticism for its price and deadlines. EDF‘s bet is that the accumulated experience will reduce the cost of the country’s next nuclear plant, Sizewell C, whose base cost is 22% lower than the lowest estimate for Hinkley Point C and is expected to be completed by 2039.
The precise installation by the world’s largest crane shows the impressive side of nuclear engineering, but the Hinkley Point C nuclear plant has also become a symbol of an expensive and delayed project.
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