A longtime nuclear industry executive has joined used fuel management specialist NAC International as chief strategy officer.
William Gallo “will lead the development of business strategies, strategic partnerships, and acquisitions to drive NAC’s growth and profitability,” according to a press release Monday form the Peachtree Corners, Ga.-based company.
President and CEO Kent Cole said Monday he could not discuss details of what that would involve. “He’s certainly going to work with our leadership team to look for opportunities where we think there is potential for growth,” Cole said in a telephone interview with RadWaste Monitor.
Gallo assumed his new position this week, Cole said.
He most recently served as chief executive officer for Veolia Nuclear Solutions, the nuclear decommissioning and waste management branch of the Paris-based multinational. Veolia said this week only that Gallo left the company more than a year ago.
He was succeeded by Veolia executive Dominique Richit in July 2019. “Dominique was chosen because of his important background in hazardous waste and global approach of the business,” Veolia said this week.
Gallo was chief executive at nuclear cleanup and decommissioning technologies developer Kurion at the time of its acquisition by Veolia in 2016. He also held the CEO spot at AREVA Federal Services, NAC noted in its release.
Established in 1968, NAC in 2013 was acquired by manufacturing and engineering company Hitachi Zosen Corp., based in Osaka, Japan. It provides storage vessels and transportation systems for spent nuclear reactor fuel, having contracted for over 680 dry-storage vessels and conducting more than 3,750 shipments, the release says.
The company is also partnering in Interim Storage Partners’ project for a consolidated interim storage facility in Andrews County, Texas, for used fuel from U.S. nuclear power plants. The ISP joint venture, a partnership of Waste Control Specialist and Orano, hopes by 2021 to receive its 40-year license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the facility. With additional authorizations, the facility could hold up to 40,000 metric tons of radioactive material for 120 years.
The facility would be designed to accept NAC used-fuel vessels for storage.
“NAC’s efforts are focused on its own above-ground used fuel storage systems in use in the U.S., its MPC, UMS and MAGNASTOR technology designs,” company spokesman Stephen Dyke said by email Tuesday. “NAC is also advancing its development of innovative receipt ancillary equipment, methods and solutions required to effectively implement NAC systems at the CISF during operations. “
Management continues to look for opportunities for new partnerships or acquisitions. “We have some bandwidth and authorization to go out and do some reasonably sized acquisitions,” Cole said, declining to elaborate.
In November, NAC announced it had signed an agreement to assist in the design, preparation, and production of spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste disposal canisters for Deep Isolation. The company, headquartered in Berkeley, Calif., has developed an approach for “deep drillhole” disposal of radioactive waste.
There is nothing new to report on the partnership, Dyke said.
