The Department of Energy has begun market research for a contractor to convert low-activity radioactive waste into glass at the Waste Treatment Plant being built at the Hanford Site in Washington state,
The DOE Office of Environmental Management on Thursday published a request for Information (RFI)/sources sought notice for a vendor to run Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste (DFLAW) at the Bechtel-built plant.
The nuclear cleanup office is seeking capability statements from potential contractors with specialized skills needed to run the DFLAW operation. It is particularly interested in nuclear industry vendors, along with companies with experience operating chemical facilities, given that the work will involve chemical processing, according to the RFI.
In December 2000, Bechtel began its $14.7 billion construction contract for the WTP, which is set to expire by the end of 2022. There is apparently nothing to prevent the builder from bidding on the operations contract, an industry source said by phone Thursday.
The direct-feed complex – comprised primarily of the Low-Activity Waste Facility (LAW), Analytical Laboratory, and Balance of Facilities support systems — is in the process of startup and commissioning, DOE said in the release.
There is about 56 million gallons of radioactive and chemical waste in 177 underground tanks at Hanford; about is low-activity waste. The Energy Department is not legally required to start processing the high-activity waste until the end of 2033.
The Energy Department and Bechtel remain on track to meet a milestone include in a federal court consent decree on tank waste at Hanford. The decree requires low-activity waste processing to begin no later than December 2023.
Running the operation includes receiving waste from the tank closure contractor, currently Washington River Protection Solutions; processing the feed through the vitrification process, in which the waste is combined waste with silica and other glass-forming material and then heated to 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit; and transferring the treated material back to the tank contractor for eventual disposition.
Responses to the RFI will help the Energy Department determine vital major contract specifics, such as the length and potential value of the award. The market research document did not include any timeline for issuing a request for proposals.
Capability statements and any questions should be emailed no later than 5 p.m. ET on May 11, to [email protected].
The chief point of contact for the procurement is Environmental Management Consolidated Business Center Senior Contracting Officer Clare Rexroad, at [email protected].
