The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on Tuesday began collecting data from potential vendors for the upcoming decommissioning of the retired SM-1A reactor at Fort Greely, Alaska.
The Army Corps emphasized that it is not yet taking bids, but is only seeking capability statements from companies that might perform the work. The eventual contract is expected to be worth $150 million to $200 million, according to the notice on a federal procurement website.
“By way of this sources sought notice, the USACE [Baltimore District] intends to determine the extent of capable firms that are engaged in providing the services described hereunder,” the notice states. “The responses to this notice will be used for planning purposes for upcoming procurements.”
The SM-1A reactor operated from 1962 to 1972, generating power and heating steam for utilities at the Army base about 6 miles south of Delta Junction and more than 200 miles northeast of Anchorage. Bids for decommissioning should be accepted beginning next April. The decommissioning contract is scheduled to be awarded in by July 2022 with work carried out from fiscal years 2022 to 2028.
Decommissioning the retired reactor will involve planning, engineering design, construction, demolition, decommissioning, waste disposal, and related operations, the Army Corps said. It will require personnel with training in a long list of specialties, including air and groundwater monitoring; packaging, transport, and disposal of radiological and hazardous materials; radiation safety; industrial hygiene; geotechnical investigations and design; and computer-aided drafting and scanning.
Potential vendors have until 11 a.m. Eastern time on July 9 to respond to the sources-sought notice, by email to Contract Specialist Leigha Arnold, at [email protected]. They should cite the notice number W912DR20R0045.
Respondents will have up to 10 pages, front and back, to describe their recent work in areas including nuclear reactor decommissioning and disposal; hazardous, toxic, and radioactive waste services; meeting cost control, performance, and other expectations from government and commercial clients; obtaining permits; and conducting decommissioning and demolition in a tight space and near an active facility.
That last part will be key, as the SM-1A power plant is co-located in a building with an operational utility facility. The Army Corps on Wednesday stopped accepting sources-sought filings ahead of procurement for a contractor to segregate the two operations. A sufficient number of responses were submitted to enable the Army Corps to proceed with the procurement, according to Brenda Barber, project manager for the Baltimore District’s Environmental and Munitions Design Center.
A formal request for proposals for the utility job is scheduled in August or September of this year, with the contract award the following December or January.
“The utility segregation project will involve installing essential equipment to allow Doyon Utilities to continue operation of the Central Heating and Power Plant located in Bldg. 606,” Barber said by email Friday. “This involves replacing and installing electrical switchgear, water softening system, communications, etc. We will also be installing temporary space for parts storage and Doyon’s administrative needs.”
The SM-1A is the third of three nuclear power reactors scheduled for decommissioningby the Army Corps.
Contractor APTIM Federal Services decommissioned the MH-1A reactor on the STURGIS barge from 2015 to 2018 at the Port of Galveston in Texas. APTIM also in 2018 received a $2 million contract to engineer the utility segregation at Fort Greely.
The Army Corps expects in September to issue a decommissioning contract for the SM-1 reactor at Fort Belvoir, Va. On-site work would begin there by next April, with completion scheduled for 2025.
Leading companies in the domestic nuclear decommissioning market – APTIM, EnergySolutions, Holtec International, and Orano – did not respond to queries by deadline Friday on whether they plan to bid on either of the upcoming contracts. The work broadly coversdecontamination of facilities, dismantlement of the reactor building and other structures, packaging and removal of waste, and remediation of the property.
Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article included an incorrect amount for APTIM’s contract for utility segregation at Fort Greely.
