Jeremy L. Dillon
RW Monitor
5/22/2015
AREVA TN has expanded its role in Waste Control Specialists’ pursuit of constructing an interim storage facility, the two companies announced this week. AREVA will serve as prime subcontractor for the project, providing the design, development, construction, operation and maintenance of the proposed consolidated storage facility, as well as support for the licensing and transport of spent fuel to the site. When WCS first announced its intentions earlier this year, AREVA was only participating in the licensing and environmental review process, but with this announcement, the company will participate in the almost every facet of the project. “We are pleased to have AREVA fully integrated into our effort to license, construct and operate a Consolidated Interim Storage Facility,” WCS President Rod Baltzer said in a statement. “The combined experience and expertise of our companies provides a comprehensive solution that can address the very real need for an immediate interim storage solution for the used nuclear fuel currently stranded at decommissioned sites around the country. We believe our Andrews County location, experienced workforce and supportive community make this an ideal consent based storage solution.”
AREVA also announced this week that NAC International signed an agreement to jointly support AREVA in the WCS licensing, design, construction and operation of the Consolidated Interim Storage Facility project. “We welcome the opportunity to work with NAC during the licensing phase of this project,” said Mike McMahon, senior vice president and CISF project director for AREVA, in a statement. “NAC’s participation complements AREVA’s experience and capabilities, further strengthening WCS’ ability to deliver to our nation a solution consistent with the recommendations of the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future.”
WCS earlier this year announced its plans to construct a private, consent-based interim storage facility at its Andrews, Texas, site, pending the approval of a license application by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and an indication from Congress that DOE could move forward with shipping waste to a location other than Yucca Mountain. The Senate’s Fiscal Year 2016 Energy and Water Appropriations bill included language this week that would enable the DOE to ship waste to a private site for interim storage. The company anticipates finishing the license process for an interim storage facility by 2019 and finishing construction by the end of 2020.
