Balfour Beatty is putting together a team to bid for the development and delivery of a fleet of nuclear reactors (ERPs) for the UK and is working with French nuclear plant provider AREVA.
Balfour Beatty's nuclear experience in the UK in the last 50 years, covers civil engineering, M&E engineering, construction and facilities management at sites including Sellafield and Sizewell B. Balfour Beatty will work with AREVA to identify the skills and resources required to deliver EPRs in the UK and put an effective supply chain in place.

Ian Tyler, Balfour Beatty chief executive, said: 'Balfour Beatty has a strong heritage in the nuclear sector and the breadth and depth of expertise to deliver large and complex multi-disciplinary engineering and construction projects. We look forward to working together to deliver the EPR programme over the long term.”

In a separate move, Balfour Beatty has formed a joint venture with Taylor Woodrow's parent the French firm VINCI Construction. Balfour Beatty aims to enter the tendering process to bid for project management, construction and civil engineering infrastructure work for the EPR programme in the UK.

The nuclear programme is expected to create 10-15,000 jobs during a 25-year period. Site construction of the first EPR could start as early as 2013.

Mike O’Brien, minister at the Department of Energy and Climate Change, said: “'This is good news. It represents a vote of confidence by AREVA in the UK new nuclear market and a vote of confidence in the UK supply chain. This is the welcome face of low carbon energy we'll see more and more over the coming decades, opening up enormous potential for UK plc at home and globally.'