Calder Hall anniversary marks 70 years of industrial nuclear power

The world’s first nuclear power station to generate electricity on an industrial scale, Calder Hall was officially opened 70 years ago this October by Queen Elizabeth II.

Construction on the Cumbrian coast began in August 1953, with a reactor design using natural uranium metal fuel clad in a magnesium alloy. The first reactor went critical in 1956, and by August it was feeding power to the grid.

“This new power, which has proved itself  to be such a terrifying weapon of destruction,” said the Queen to an audience of thousands, “is harnessed for the first time for the common good of our community.” But the reactor always had another purpose: to generate plutonium for the UK’s nuclear weapons programme. 

Originally designed to run for 20 years, it lasted for 47, finally closing in 2003. It is now part of the Sellafield clean-up, which will run until 2125 at an expected cost of £136bn. 

Read more about award-winning engineering heritage projects on IMechE's heritage awards page. 

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