The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has taken over the running of the Sellafield site.
The agreement sees Sellafield Ltd – which is responsible for clean-up of the nuclear site – becoming a subsidiary of the NDA.
The new subsidiary model is expected to help Sellafield Ltd build on and accelerate progress in hazard and risk reduction and decommissioning and deliver them more efficiently.
John Clarke, NDA CEO said: “This is a new chapter for Sellafield. Without a commercially driven contract, the NDA and Sellafield Ltd will be working to exactly the same goal, safely delivering the mission as quickly and efficiently as possible.
“Much progress has been made under the old arrangements but in the long term they are not suited to a site like Sellafield. The work that needs to be done at Sellafield is very complex, often difficult to define and spans many years. The new arrangements will accommodate the challenges at the site more easily and allow for longer term planning. The private sector will still be heavily involved in delivering work at Sellafield but no longer as an owner.”
Earlier this month, Sellafield announced the entire bulk stocks of historic nuclear fuel were removed from one of the site’s oldest ponds as part of its 100-year mission to clean up the nuclear site.