The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) group has welcomed
today's UK Government policy decision to immobilise the UK's
inventory of civil separated plutonium at Sellafield.
Immobilisation puts the material beyond reach, further mitigating
the long-term safety and security risks associated with it more
efficiently.
The NDA group will continue progressing research and development
work to identify the preferred technology for immobilisation,
converting the material to an even safer and more stable form
ready for final disposal in a Geological Disposal Facility (GDF).
The next phase will be to seek approval for a major programme on
plutonium disposition, requiring a nuclear material processing
plant and interim storage capability to be built at Sellafield,
bringing major investment to the area and supporting thousands of
skilled jobs for decades.
David Peattie, Nuclear Decommissioning Authority Group CEO, said:
We welcome the Government's policy decision on the future
immobilisation of plutonium, paving the way for significant
investment in West Cumbria.
This allows us to continue to deliver on our commitment to
safely, securely, and sustainably deal with the UK's civil
nuclear legacy.
It will open up opportunities in areas including research and
development, project planning, construction, engineering, and
operations.
As well as generating thousands of jobs during construction, and
hundreds of jobs in operation, the disposition programme will
result in a significant boost to the regional supply chain and
support investment in local infrastructure projects.
Euan Hutton, Sellafield Ltd CEO, said:
This is an important moment for our workforce, supply chain,
stakeholders, and local community.
We have safely and securely managed plutonium at Sellafield since
the 1940s, developing world leading expertise in the process.
The decision to immobilise the material places Sellafield at the
centre of the effort, working with the NDA, NWS and our partners
including the supply chain, to create a solution that delivers
maximum value for all of our stakeholders.
The UK's inventory of civil plutonium arose from the reprocessing
of spent fuel undertaken over many decades. This was the process
of taking used nuclear fuel and separating it into its component
parts, one of which is plutonium which will remain radioactive
and toxic for a considerable period of time.
It is currently stored safely and securely at Sellafield, which
is recognised as the UK's centre of excellence for plutonium
management.
The policy decision follows substantial technical and economic
analysis by the NDA group, which identified immobilisation as the
option to best meet the Government's objectives. Work will now
continue on developing a suitable immobilisation solution to
submit for Government approval to progress to the next phase.
Organisations involved in the delivery of this work will include
the NDA group, and in particular Sellafield Ltd and Nuclear Waste
Services, the UK National Nuclear Laboratory and the wider supply
chain.
In the meantime, plutonium will continue to be stored in a suite
of custom-built facilities at Sellafield that ensure its safety
and security in line with regulatory requirements.
You can read the Written Ministerial Statement here: Written
statements - Written questions, answers and statements - UK
Parliament.
