Radioactive waste treatment services

Tender description

As part of its role as the NDA’s Low Level Waste (LLW) management contractor, LLWR is leading the implementation of the UK Strategy for the management of solid low level radioactive waste from the nuclear industry, as approved by Government in August 2010, through the national waste programme for lower activity wastes. The core objective of the programme is to implement the waste management hierarchy to prolong the life of the low level waste repository, and thus reduce the NDA’s Nuclear Provision by providing sufficient capacity to manage all lower activity wastes arising from the NDA’s decommissioning programme at the repository. At the heart of LLWR’s mission is the provision of treatment and disposal services that provide alternative options to waste producers to preserve the capacity at the low level waste repository. The waste services contract was introduced in April 2010 to provide a Framework Agreement for all Customers to access LLWR’s suite of waste and logistic services. The procurement project will deliver a 4-year multi-supplier Framework Agreement in line with the recommendation made in the initial business case. The current estimated maximum spend through the framework is 65 000 000 GBP, although the framework is formally a zero-value agreement, with no spend guaranteed. The potential framework value is forecast to meet the demands of the Joint Waste Management Plans between LLWR and its customers. The delivery of a framework that meets customer requirements in terms of cost, quality and schedule is key to the success of the framework. The scope of the new framework is to undertake the following: — waste preparation and pre-treatment, — treatment of waste, — disposal of primary and secondary waste to permitted routes, — decay storage, — on-site works including large component removal and de-planting activities, — transport, — characterisation, — packaging provision, — expert support.