Inspections by safety officials in December revealed failings in the fire safety arrangements of the MEH alliance, the companies undertaking mechanical, electrical & heating (MEH) and ventilation & air conditioning (HVAC) installation at Hinkley Point C.
All five companies in the MEH alliance have been serviced with fire enforcement notices by the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR). They are:
- Altrad Babcock
- Altrad Services
- Balfour Beatty Kilpatrick
- Cavendish Nuclear
- NG Bailey .
The Unit 1 HF (electrical) building was inspected in December 2025 as part of a targeted inspection to assess the MEH fire safety arrangements for compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.
ONR inspectors identified several significant shortfalls including the absence of a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment, inadequate means of escape resulting in insufficient emergency exits being available for the numbers of people working in the building, and a significant accumulation of combustible materials within a staircase designated for use as an emergency exit route.
The enforcement action requires the named organisations to make improvements to ensure adequate arrangements are developed and embedded to address the shortfalls in compliance and prevent reoccurrence.
ONR head of regulation Mahtab Khan said: “Fire safety is an important part of our regulatory activity and is not optional – it is a legal requirement that protects lives. We will not hesitate to take enforcement action where safety standards fall short, and we expect all duty holders to treat fire safety with the urgency it demands.
“Working alongside the principal contractor and MEH alliance, we have made good progress in understanding the root causes of these shortfalls to ensure they are addressed.”
ONR is also pursuing the main works contractors, Bouygues Travaux Publics and Laing O’Rourke Delivery, through the courts for safety breaches. [See: Hinkley Point C contractors deny health and safety offences]
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