Latest news with #LaingO'Rourke
Irish Post
7 days ago
- Business
- Irish Post
Laing O'Rourke welcomes Government green light for Sizewell C nuclear plant project
LAING O'ROURKE has welcomed the British Government's decision this week to go-ahead with plans to build the Sizewell C nuclear power plant. The Irish-founded firm is one of three construction companies signed up to deliver the project in Suffolk, which is being jointly funded by Canadian pension fund La Caisse, UK energy firm Centrica and Amber Infrastructure. On July 22, Britain's Energy Secretary Ed Miliband signed off on the project, which will deliver clean power for the equivalent of six million homes, as well as support 10,000 jobs and create 1,500 apprenticeships once it is operational, which is expected to be in the 2030s. 'It is time to do big things and build big projects in this country again- and today we announce an investment that will provide clean, homegrown power to millions of homes for generations to come,' he said. Plans for the Sizewell C nuclear power plant have been given the green light by the British Government this week 'This government is making the investment needed to deliver a new golden age of nuclear, so we can end delays and free us from the ravages of the global fossil fuel markets to bring bills down for good,' he added. Last month the British Government confirmed it will invest £14.2bn in the project and Laing O'Rourke signed a Programme Alliance Agreement to form a Civil Works Alliance (CWA) with Sizewell C, Balfour Beatty and Bouygues Travaux Publics. All members of the CWA are already working on the near-replica Hinkley Point C project in Somerset. Their work on Sizewell C will include enabling works and earthworks, marine and tunnelling works, main civils works, ancillary works, permanent roads and networks. 'Learnings and verified proof-of-concept practices from the construction of Hinkley Point C will be applied by the CWA to the construction of Sizewell C,' a Laing O'Rourke spokesperson said. The firm's Group Chief Executive, Cathal O'Rourke said they are already planning for Sizewell C. "Laing O'Rourke is already working with our alliance partners to plan for this complex project,' he said in a statement this week. 'We welcome the certainty that this decision brings for the project and are proud to play our part in delivering the next chapter of Britain's clean energy future.' He added: 'We've learned a lot from the work we've done on Hinkley Point C and that experience will power how we deliver this complex project and we are excited to keep working with our partners on this critical project." See More: Ed Miliband, Hinkley Point C, Laing O'Rourke, Sizewell C
Business News Wales
17-07-2025
- Business
- Business News Wales
National Grid Shares Plans for 'Vital' Network Upgrades to Support Port Talbot Green Steel Transition
National Grid is inviting residents and businesses in Margam to learn more about a 'vital' infrastructure upgrade that will support the transition to Tata Steel's new electric arc furnace (EAF) at Port Talbot and strengthen the local electricity network. The proposed Margam Connection Project will see the expansion of the existing Margam site with a new 275kV gas-insulated substation (GIS), details of which will be shared at the event. Plans for a second 275kV GIS on the Tata Steel site, and an underground cable connecting the two substations, were part of a separate planning process. The project is a key step in enabling green steel production at Port Talbot and in supporting local jobs, while also providing capacity for future energy connections in the region, National Grid said. On Monday Tata Steel broke ground on its EAF at Port Talbot, marking the start of construction on its new low carbon steelmaking facility that will be powered through the new substations. National Grid will be working with principal contractor Laing O'Rourke to build its two new GIS facilities, both using innovative switchgear technology which is free from sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) – a commonly used electrical insulator that is also a potent greenhouse gas. Using SF6-free insulating gas in the substations helps reduce the sites' physical and environmental footprints, and marks another step towards National Grid's ambition to reduce SF6 emissions from its network by 50% by 2030. Details for the Margam Connection Project's public information event are as follows: Date: Thursday 17 July 2025 Time: 2:00pm – 8:00pm Location: Margam Community Centre, 39 Bertha Rd, Port Talbot, SA13 2AP The project will hold a 28-day statutory pre-application consultation (PAC) before National Grid submits its planning application to Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council later this summer. Richard Gott, project director at National Grid Electricity Transmission, said: 'Our Margam Connection Project will help deliver a cleaner, more secure energy future for South Wales, while supporting sustainable growth in one of the region's key industries. 'By enabling the electrification of Tata Steel's operations, we're not only supporting the UK's transition to green steel but also helping to safeguard jobs and strengthen the local economy. We look forward to engaging with the community and hearing their views.' Laing O'Rourke's managing director for its Europe hub, Peter Lyons, said: 'We're proud to be part of the Margam Connection Project delivery team, continuing our partnership with National Grid. Through early collaboration, we have worked together on the design and implementation programme, National Grid has valued both our unique operating model and our technical expertise. This project is another fantastic example of how we're helping to deliver cleaner and more secure energy for the UK.' Across Wales and England, National Grid is planning £35 billion of investment in its transmission network between 2026 to 2031 to connect new clean power sources, help electrify the industries of today and tomorrow, and support economic growth in Britain.
Daily Record
09-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Record
Drone video of site of new Monklands Hospital released by NHS Lanarkshire
The video indicates where key aspects of the new hospital campus will be constructed by NHS Lanarkshire's Monklands Replacement Project. An exciting bird's-eye view of the site of the new Monklands Hospital has been released. The eye-catching drone video allows viewers to soar above the landscape at Wester Moffat in Airdrie that will become home to the replacement facility. The video, showing the former farmland beginning to transform through preparatory groundworks, indicates where key aspects of the new hospital campus will be constructed by NHS Lanarkshire's Monklands Replacement Project (MRP). It begins by highlighting the location of neighbouring Caldervale High School to enable orientation by the viewer. Fiona Cowan, MRP clinical lead for nursing, said: "It's inspiring to see the vast extent of the site and envisage where services and facilities will appear as Scotland's most advanced hospital takes shape. "As the camera flies across the landscape, captions pop up to show where future landmarks will be, including multi-storey and surface car parks, offering twice the number of spaces than the existing hospital. "We see the part of the site that will host a huge energy centre that will help drive our vision to create Scotland's first net zero hospital and power our ambitions for a fully digital facility. "The public and our staff can see the location of the wards. Then there's the emergency department, which will be working in tandem with a trailblazing 'assessment village' concept under our revolutionary model of care. "Other areas pointed out include critical care, which is among the services that will benefit from our clinical design advancements - supporting patients from all specialties who need enhanced levels of care and life support, and ensuring people at their sickest are looked after by the clinical teams with the right specialist knowledge. " Monklands is the home of cancer care in Lanarkshire so the area where the new cancer unit will be built is also highlighted." As the drone sweeps above, viewers can also catch a glimpse of the site compound and the heavy plant currently undertaking 'enabling works'. An incredible one million cubic metres of earth will be moved by MRP construction partner Laing O'Rourke as land is levelled off to provide a platform for the new hospital. The MRP is currently completing its final business case for Scottish Government approval, opening the way for hospital construction to start ahead of a scheduled opening in 2031.
The Herald Scotland
09-07-2025
- Health
- The Herald Scotland
Drone video shows site of Scotland's most advanced hospital
The video, showing the former farmland beginning to transform through preparatory groundworks, indicates where key aspects of the new hospital campus will be constructed by NHS Lanarkshire's Monklands Replacement Project (MRP). It begins by highlighting the location of neighbouring Caldervale High School to enable orientation by the viewer. READ MORE: Fiona Cowan, MRP Clinical Lead for Nursing, said: 'It's inspiring to see the vast extent of the site and envisage where services and facilities will appear as Scotland's most advanced hospital takes shape. 'As the camera flies across the landscape, captions pop up to show where future landmarks will be, including multi-storey and surface car parks, offering twice the number of spaces than the existing hospital. 'We see the part of the site that will host a huge energy centre that will help drive our vision to create Scotland's first net zero hospital and power our ambitions for a fully digital facility. 'The public and our staff can see the location of the wards. Then there's the emergency department, which will be working in tandem with a trailblazing 'assessment village' concept under our revolutionary model of care. An aerial view of the hospital design (Image: NHS Lanarkshire) 'Other areas pointed out include critical care, which is among the services that will benefit from our clinical design advancements – supporting patients from all specialties who need enhanced levels of care and life support, and ensuring people at their sickest are looked after by the clinical teams with the right specialist knowledge. 'Monklands is the home of cancer care in Lanarkshire so the area where the new cancer unit will be built is also highlighted.' As the drone sweeps above, viewers can also catch a glimpse of the site compound and the heavy plant currently undertaking enabling works. One million cubic metres of earth will be moved by MRP construction partner Laing O'Rourke as land is levelled off to provide a platform for the new hospital. The MRP is currently completing its final business case for Scottish Government approval, opening the way for hospital construction to start ahead of a scheduled opening in 2031.
Sydney Morning Herald
22-06-2025
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
Bungle brings Sydney's largest metro tunnel build to a grinding halt
However, the potential fix is complicated by the proximity of a giant hole for Parramatta's underground station, and ongoing negotiations between Sydney Metro and contractors. The project is at risk of further cost increases even if the tunnel is dug deeper – there are claims running into the hundreds of millions of dollars by Malaysian contractor Gamuda for delays to work as a result of the problems, sources say. Halting the boring machines has required a resequencing of work at the Parramatta station. Gamuda, which declined to comment, is leading a consortium that is building the nine-kilometre stretch of twin tunnels between Westmead and Sydney Olympic Park for the Metro West project. It is one of three major tunnelling contracts for the underground line, which will span 24 kilometres from Westmead to Sydney's CBD once completed in 2032. The estimated cost of tunnelling works at the line's western end has already surged by $353 million from its original estimate to $2.7 billion, tender documents have shown. Sydney Metro said it was aware of the matters relating to the Telstra building before awarding the western tunnelling package contract in 2022, and the contractors knew of them before starting work. The agency said it was working with Gamuda and consortium partner Laing O'Rourke to finalise the design for the remainder of tunnelling and expected the boring machines to start again 'very shortly'. 'Ongoing discussions between Sydney Metro and its contractors are commercial-in-confidence,' it said in a statement. 'Sydney Metro has been working with Telstra to co-ordinate geotechnical investigations at this site to verify ground conditions, foundations and pile depth of the building.' The agency said geotechnical results had been used as input into the final metro tunnel design and alignment to 'mitigate any risks to the buildings above'. 'Due to the complex function of the 213 Church Street building, Sydney Metro has also completed investigations from an adjoining site to further verify foundation depths,' it said. Telstra said it was working closely with the government and Sydney Metro to ensure its infrastructure was not affected by the new metro station. Transport Minister John Graham said it was appropriate that the tunnelling machines 'proceed with an abundance of caution' as they neared the site. 'Thankfully, we expect the [tunnel boring machines] to be back in action very soon,' he said. Shadow transport minister Natalie Ward said Sydney could not afford for Metro West to lose momentum and be delayed a second time. Loading 'However, taxpayers rightly deserve to know which expert signed off on the advice that has led to this issue,' she said. Delays will create headaches for the government, which suffered a blow last month when Australian Turf Club members voted against selling Rosehill Gardens racecourse for $5 billion. The government had hoped to develop it into a new 'mini-city' of 25,000 homes and build a metro station there. Sydney Metro executives told a hearing in March that analysis provided to the government showed Metro West risks costing more than its $25.3 billion budget.
