Atomic Energy of Canada Limited is proceeding with previously-announced plans to seek bidders seeking to run Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, the federal Crown corporation said Friday.
Canadian National Energy Alliance, an SNC-Lavalin-led team with Jacobs and Fluor as minority partners, currently runs daily operations of Canada’s national labs under a 10-year contract set to expire in September of 2025, according to Atomic Energy of Canada (AECL) procurement documents.
Later this spring, AECL plans outreach to indigenous people, local communities near labs and other stakeholders with an eye toward issuance of a draft request for proposals to vetted parties sometime between now and spring 2024.
The final request for proposals should be out by spring of 2024 with the ultimate contract award envisioned by summer 2025, according to the timeline posted on the AECL website.
AECL announced kick-off of the pre-qualification process Friday, days after a March 23 site tour ahead of the upcoming solicitation. The AECL is looking for an entity to manage the national labs, including the Chalk River Laboratories and other satellite sites, which lead the nation’s research into nuclear science and technology and other work, including climate change, according to last week’s press release.
“It is expected that the scope of work under this procurement will include the management of all AECL’s sites,” according to the release.
To pre-qualify, bidders must show they possess the integrity, expertise, security knowhow and financial stability, to run day-to-day operation of the labs, according to the press release.
