Duncan Hawthorne joins Hitachi’s UK nuclear subsidiary to spearhead new power station plans

Horizon Nuclear Power has appointed Duncan Hawthorne as its new chief executive officer to spearhead the development of the Wylfa Newydd nuclear power station in Wales.

Earlier this year Japanese engineering giant Hitachi setup a new company, Hitachi Nuclear Energy Europe to oversea the firm’s nuclear business across the continent.

The UK subsidiary will work with alongside Bechtel and Japanese engineering giant JGC Corporation, who Hitachi confirmed it was in “exclusive talks” with last August to take on the main engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor role on the project.

Previously CEO of Bruce Power L.P. in Canada, Hawthonre brings a wealth of experience working in the nuclear sector in North America. His work in Canada led to the award of the Energy Person of the Year by the Energy Council of Canada. Hawthorne has been a member of Horizon’s board of directors since 2013.

Speaking of the appointment Hawthorne said: “I am very pleased to be joining this organization which has ambitious plans for the future and I hope to be able to add my experience in plant operations and leadership to help complement the many talented people who already are part of the Horizon workforce.

“I will be building on the strong progress made to date under Alan Raymant’s leadership and I look forward to working with him and the team, to ensure this success continues.”

Construction of Wylfa power station is expected to start in 2019 if the necessary permissions, consents and commercial agreements are secured, with power expected to be generated in the first half of the 2020s.

 

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