Sellafield nuclear-storage plant to close
3 Aug 2011
London – The UK’s Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has annouced plans to close the Sellafield MOX plant (SMP). The move, which could cost 600 jobs, is linked to reduced Japanese demand for SMP’s plutonium-storage facilities.
The decision follows an NDA review of the future of SMP in the light of the impact on the Japanese nuclear industry of the earthquake and tsunami, and subsequent disaster at the Fukushima power plant, in March.
Working with Japanese customers, the NDA said that the potential contract delays following the events in Japan made it “commercially necessary is to close SMP at the earliest practical opportunity.”
The Authority said it will work with Sellafield Ltd to mitigate any employment impacts, including by redeploying SMP workers elsewhere across the site over coming years in the new Sellafield Plan.
NDA, meanwhile, will continue to store Japanese plutonium and continue to support the Japanese Utilities’ policy for the reuse of their material.
Separately, the UK government has been consulting on the policy options for dealing with the UK’s plutonium stockpile, including possible re-use as MOX fuel. The NDA said it “awaits with interest the outcome of this consultation.”
Trade unions, meanwhile, are seeking meetings with energy minister Charles Hendry and the company about the decison.
Keith Hazlewood, GMB national secretary said, “The announcement of the closure of the Mox plant at Sellafield is a devastating blow for the Nuclear Industry and the local community of Cumbria.”
