Chinese investors must make up their minds about striking a deal for the Hinkley Point nuclear plant in Britain, the head of EDF Energy told the Financial Times in an interview published Friday.

"My hope is that our Chinese partners can take the right decision and will seize the day. The ball is in their court," said Vincent de Rivaz, who heads up the UK division of the French electricity giant EDF.

He added that Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to Britain between October 20 and 23 would be a good opportunity for such an agreement.

EDF is the lead contractor in the consortium, which also includes state-run Chinese firms China General Nuclear Corporation and China National Nuclear Corporation.

The Chinese companies are expected to largely finance and get a stake of around 40 percent in the project, which will have two new reactors that authorities hope will generate seven percent of Britain's electricity.

The estimated total cost of the project is 24.5 billion pounds (33.3 billion euros, $37.1 billion).