South Carolina State University President James Clark said Oct. 16 his institution is part of a team of colleges vying to run the Energy Department’s Savannah River National Laboratory.
The historically black public university in Orangeburg, S.C., is a member of a team with Clemson, the University of South Carolina, Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia, Clark said. He made the remarks during a meeting of the South Carolina Nuclear Advisory Council.
Clark addressed the gathering after last week’s deadline for Weapons Complex Monitor.
It was not clear from Clark’s comments, which institution is the leader of the group. Should the group of universities win the lab management contract it would mark the first time a historically-black college or university becomes part of a Department of Energy management contract, Clark said.
The Aiken Standard reported last month that the president of the University of South Carolina, Bob Caslen, made a similar statement to the Rotary Club in Aiken, S.C.
During a subsequent presentation to the council on Friday, DOE Savannah River site manager for the Office of Environmental Management, Mike Budney, said the bids were received Aug. 10.
In late June, DOE issued the final request for proposals for a stand-alone management contract for the Savannah River National Laboratory. More than 60 companies and organizations participated in an online presentation about the contract. The business is expected to be worth $380 million per year, or potentially $3.8 billion over 10 years. Laboratory management currently falls under the management and operations contract for the entire site, which is held by Fluor-led Savannah River Nuclear Solutions.
The Savannah River National Laboratory is a Federally Funded Research and Development Center. It has a staff of about 1,000 and an annual budget of $350 million.
