GE Wins Contract To Power Hinkley Point Nuclear Project

Industrial goods manufacturer General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) recently received a $1.9 billion contract to power the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in the U.K. after British Prime Minister Theresa May approved the project following a six-week review. The $24 billion (£18.17 billion) project is the first of its kind in the country in decades and will replace the older coal-fired plants.

General Electric will build two 1,770-megawatt Arabelle steam turbines and generators for the project, which would be sufficient to power 6 million households in the country, meeting about 7% of the total power generation needs for 60 years. The Arabelle steam turbines are a comprehensive product from the stable of Alstom (PA:ALSO), which General Electric acquired last year. These turbines can be adapted to any heat sink conditions to meet the expectations of the most demanding nuclear power producers in the world.

Approvals for new nuclear projects are gradually flying of the shelf following a steep drop after the 2011 Fukushima accident in Japan. General Electric is also bidding for various such projects in Finland, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, India and China.

The Hinkley Point C nuclear power station will be built by French state-controlled utility company EDF (PA:EDF), with an $8 billion investment from Chinese state-backed firm China General Nuclear Power Corporation. The project is likely to boost the beleaguered construction industry that was plagued by a slowdown following the Brexit vote. In addition, the project is expected to boost the overall economy as it helps to guarantee the stability of the future energy supply amid dwindling fossil fuel supply.

The nuclear power project in the U.K. is likely to script a new era of power generation technology and digital integration. General Electric’s Power segment is a leading player in the power generation industry with state-of-the-art technologies and digital offerings that help in making power more affordable, reliable, accessible and sustainable.

General Electric currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Some other favorably ranked stocks in the industry include CLARCOR Inc. (NYSE:CLC) , Crane Co. (NYSE:CR) and Barloworld Ltd. (OTC:BRRAY) , each carrying the same Zacks Rank as General Electric. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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