Sizewell nuclear power stations

Sizewell nuclear site stands near Leiston in Suffolk, beside the small fishing village of Sizewell. Two stations occupy a low plateau above flood level, with bedrock of Norwich Crag and Red Crag sands above London Clay. Sizewell A, now being taken apart, once housed two Magnox reactors. Sizewell B, the UK’s only pressurised water reactor, still runs a single unit. A third station, Sizewell C, is planned with twin European pressurised reactors. The site is worth the journey for its scale and history. Sizewell A’s construction began in 1960 after a quick approval process and finished in 1967. Over 40 years it generated 110 terawatt-hours, enough for six months of domestic power in England and Wales. The Christopher Hinton trophy in 1972 recognised its good housekeeping. Sizewell B was built between 1987 and 1995 and now has a 20-year life extension to 2055. Visitors find large industrial buildings set against the Suffolk coast. The turbine house at Sizewell A is 120 metres long and 27 metres high, clad in aluminium. Cooling water once came through twin tunnels 410 metres offshore. Sizewell B’s reactor island follows a 1970s Westinghouse design supervised by John Laing. The site’s railway branch once carried fuel and materials; today only spent fuel moves occasionally.