During the past calendar year, Bechtel National won $9.5 million, or 92% of a potential $10.3 million, from the Department of Energy for work on the High-Level Waste Facility at the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant at the Hanford Site in Washington state.
Between Jan. 1, 2023 and Dec. 31, 2023, Bechtel earned 92% of the subjective fee averaged across seven categories.
The contractor received “good” marks and received 70% of the potential fee in three categories —for High-Level Waste (HLW) Facility’s construction, procurement as well as cost-schedule performance, according to the fee scorecard.
In four other subjective categories — executive changes 95%, de- risking activity 92%, nuclear safety 95% and completion objectives 100% — Bechtel received “excellent” ratings. The completion objectives category was worth $4.1 million out of the total pie.
For 2022, Bechtel received 83% of its potential fee for work in 2022 at the plant that will vitrify underground liquid tank waste into a solid, glass-like form for eventual disposal.
Areas for Bechtel to improve, according to the scorecard, include timeliness on procuring plant equipment and supplies, safety training of new construction workers and resolution of field changes. Achievements included deployment of a team, updating the HLW Facility safety analysis and identifying processes needed to complete the HLW design.
There will not be a separate fee awarded for other facets of the Bechtel’s contract at the Waste Treatment Plant, a DOE spokesperson said in response to an Exchange Monitor inquiry.
The plant’s Direct-Feed-Low-Activity-Waste (DFLAW) Facilities have been built and are undergoing testing in anticipation of starting to turn some of the less radioactive tank waste into glass in the first half of 2025.
The HLW Facility is scheduled for startup in 2033, according to DOE.
“Today we received fantastic news that our DOE Office of River Protection customer has awarded our team its highest annual rating for our 2023 performance,” Bechtel Project Director Brian Hartman said in a statement emailed to Bechtel workers.
“As you know, we made history in 2023, heating up the world’s largest nuclear waste melter for the DFLAW mission,” Hartman said in the email. “I am proud of these achievements and the progress we will make this year toward cold and then hot commissioning.”
Bechtel has a $15.5 billion contract for construction of the vitrification plant, which began in December 2000 and is scheduled to run through September 2024.
