Industrial services provider Bilfinger has secured a new contract to carry out inspection services for Hinkley Point C in Somerset.

The German firm said the five-year deal with French energy giant EDF, which is behind the nuclear power plant near Bridgwater, is valued at more than €20m (£17.1m).

The company confirmed the contract would get underway immediately and would allow it to create 80 new jobs at its sites in Bristol, Somerset and Humberside.

Over the course of the next five years, Bilfinger will apply various non-destructive testing methods to monitor the integrity of safety-critical systems at the power plant.

The business has won work valued at more than £400m on Hinkley Point C, having initially been selected by EDF as a strategic supplier for the Hinkley Point C project and winning contracts from 2018 for preparatory and design work, as well as waste treatment.

Last year Bilfinger was also awarded numerous services for NSSS (Nuclear Steam Supply System), BNI (Balance of Nuclear Island) and BoP (Balance of Plant).

Christina Johansson, Bilfinger’s interim chief executive and chief financial officer said the business was “proud” to expand the scope of its services at Hinkley Point, describing the project as one of its “most important”.

Ms Johansson said: “We are bundling our competences across several units so that we can deliver a comprehensive range of services for our customer EDF.

“This integrated service offering and our expertise in the technologically demanding field of nuclear power open up significant growth opportunities for us.”

Bilfinger, which announced in June it had expanded to a new site in Hull to help it deliver huge contracts in the nuclear sector, recently began offering customers a full integrated package of its inspection services.

Dubbed the ‘Bilfinger Inspection Concept’, services offered include prefabrication and routine inspections during operation through to decommissioning and dismantling.

In May, EDF said it expected to hire an additional 1,700 people in the next year to help work on Hinkley Point C, which it projects will deliver £18bn into the wider UK supply chain.

The company also revealed that spending with South West-based businesses on the project has hit £3.2bn – more than twice the initial target of £1.5bn.

The nuclear plant, one of the largest building projects in Europe, is aiming to generate low carbon emission electricity for six million homes over 60 years.

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