The National Nuclear Security Administration on Tuesday issued a presolicitation notice for the next management and operations contract for its Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. The notice comes just days after the semiautonomous Department of Energy agency said it is investigating the improper shipment of nuclear material from the laboratory to sister sites in California and South Carolina.
The NNSA plans to issue a draft request for proposal for the M&O contract on July 12 via the agency’s procurement website, as well as FedBizOpps and FedConnect. Industry comments and questions will be due by July 26 to [email protected]. The final RFP is expected in September.
The current contract has been held since 2006 by Los Alamos National Security LLC (LANS), a partnership of Bechtel National, BWX Technologies, AECOM, and the University of California. The contract ends on Sept. 30, 2018, with LANS having failed to secure additional options that could have stretched to 2026. It is valued at about $2 billion annually, along with the performance-based award fee.
That new deal is expected to cover a four-month transition, a five-year base period, and options for up to another half-decade.
“We will evaluate the opportunity as we would any other, and look forward to the release of the draft request for proposals,” Bechtel spokesman Fred deSousa said by email Tuesday. “Our first priority continues to be helping the Laboratory complete its missions safely and efficiently.”
The University of California, which prior to LANS had been the laboratory’s sole contract operator, said it would also review the request for proposals to determine its path forward.
A spokesman for BWX Technologies said Tuesday the company does not comment on active contract procurements. There was no immediate comment from AECOM.
Los Alamos National Security also holds the current “bridge” contract for environmetnal management services at the laboratory. The contract expires on Sept. 30, and DOE’s Office of Environmental Management has not announced the holder of the follow-on cleanup procurement.
The Los Alamos National Laboratory is a multidisciplinary research facility known best for its work on the U.S. nuclear deterrent, including production of the plutonium cores for nuclear weapons. The 40-square-mile site northwest of Santa Fe employs about 11,200 personnel, more than 7,000 of whom work directly for Los Alamos National Security.
