The Department of Energy plans to ink a contract extension by Friday with the management and operations manager for the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, an agency executive told a federal advisory board Monday.
“A new contract should be signed sometime this week because Sept. 30 is approaching fast,” said Jimmy “Mac” McMillian, DOE Savannah River assistant manager for infrastructure and environmental stewardship, told the Savannah River Site Citizens Advisory Board. Friday Sept. 30 marks the expiration of the last extension with Fluor-led Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS).
On the heels of that extension, DOE also intends to extend the site’s security contract with Centerra Group for up to two years, McMillian said. Centerra’s current contract, which began in October 2009 and is valued at more than $1 billion, would expire Oct. 7 without an extension, according to the agency’s latest contract chart. In a notice published in July, DOE said it planned to extend Centerra until Oct. 7, 2024.
The DOE initially awarded a 10-year, $1-billion award to a joint venture led by Securitas CIS in February 2021. But following a pair of contract challenges filed by Centerra, DOE has said “corrective action,” is being taken, and McMillian said that process is still ongoing.
Prime contractor SRNS has overseen Savannah River since August 2008 under an agreement valued at $17.8 billion. Earlier this year, DOE signaled its intention to keep SRNS on site manager for up to an additional five years. The expected four-year deal and one-year option could keep the incumbent around until September 2027.
In November 2021 the DOE indefinitely suspended a request for proposals for a new operations contract at Savannah River Site until the DOE Office of Environmental Management and the semi-autonomous National Nuclear Security Administration decide which entity will control the federal complex in the future. Environmental Management senior adviser William (Ike) White said last week to expect more details within the next three months.
