News story

NDA sets key tasks for ‘role model’ Dounreay

Dounreay’s owners today set out their priorities for decommissioning in a 3-year business plan approved by Ministers.

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, which owns Dounreay and 16 other sites in the UK, has total planned expenditure across its estate for 2014/15 of £3.2 billion.

NDA chief executive John Clarke said:

This year will also see the commencement of the third year of the Dounreay target cost contract where we expect to see further progress on the activities set out within this business plan.

In addition, Dounreay continues to be the role model for the effective management of technically challenging decommissioning under a target cost contractual model, with high levels of interest being shown from both UK and international visitors.

Overall Dounreay is on target to deliver the business case benefits originally forecast and has met all of its milestones to date while taking on additional work anticipated, but not specified in detail at the time of competition.

The business plan sets out the key tasks the NDA expects Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd, the site licence company, to deliver over the next 3 years.

Key activities at Dounreay for 2014-15 include:

  • complete the characterisation and remediation of the south-west corner of the site

  • closure of the south-west corner of the site

  • characterisation and remediation of any contamination found off-site which emanated from the site

  • landfill 42 post closure safety case approved

  • demolition of the shaft cover building

  • completion of all out-of-reactor DFR breeder fuel shipments to Sellafield

  • commence exotic fuel movements to Sellafield

  • LLW facility operational, including the grouting plant

  • completion of the Material Test Reactor raffinate immobilization

  • completion of the construction of the encapsulation facility

NDA Business Plan 2014-17

Published 16 April 2014