Magnox and RSRL to merge
The UK's Magnox Limited and Research Sites Restoration Limited (RSRL) are being merged into a single site licence company as part of changes being introduced by the new parent body organization Cavendish Fluor Partnership (CFP).
CFP - a joint venture between the UK's Cavendish Nuclear, part of Babcock International, and US-based Fluor Corporation - was awarded a contract by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) last September to manage 12 UK nuclear sites and their respective decommissioning programs. The 14-year contract is expected to be worth around £4.2 billion ($6.5 billion).
Through the contract, CFP became the new parent body organization (PBO) for site licence companies Magnox Limited and RSRL). Between them, Magnox Limited and RSRL are responsible for ten Magnox nuclear power plants, as well as the Harwell and Winfrith research centres. The sites are all owned by the NDA, which uses the PBO system to grant private companies the authority necessary to take charge of nuclear decommissioning. Successful contractors earn a fee that is a portion of the overall contract value, depending on performance.
The NDA said the merger of Magnox Limited and RSRL is expected to be completed within the next few months. It said, "The 12 sites will unite under a single leadership team, with a simplified structure and a range of shared management systems."
Consolidation process
The contract awarded to CFP in September features a consolidation phase, expected to take some 12 months to complete. The proposals submitted by CFP in its bid were based on information collated in early 2013, reflecting the situation at the Magnox and RSRL sites at the time. The consolidation process enables the company to understand project and technological developments that have taken place since then and revise its proposals appropriately.
NDA chief financial officer David Batters said, "The new plan emerging from that process is not due to be presented to the NDA until later this year, but we remain confident that the final plan agreed with CFP at that time will see substantial savings and represent excellent value for money to the taxpayer."
The NDA said, "Revisions to on-site programs will be incorporated before a final budget is agreed towards the end of this calendar year; an overall assessment of levels of change across the full 14-year contract period is still to be determined."
Researched and written
by World Nuclear News
