Sellafield 'could be centre of international expertise'

The nuclear site at Sellafield has the chance to become a centre of international expertise following the go-ahead for a new generation of nuclear power stations, UK trade unions in the industry said today.

A report they drew up said the Cumbrian facility could secure contracts from abroad to reprocess nuclear fuel, which would bring an economic benefit to future decommissioning costs.

Gary Smith, national officer of the GMB said: “GMB is arguing that given the Government’s announcement on a new building programme for Britain’s nuclear capacity, Sellafield is best place to remain the centre of the British nuclear industry.

“Given the renaissance of nuclear power globally Sellafield has the opportunity to be a centre of international expertise whilst making a significant contribution to the balance sheet of UK plc.”

Mike Graham, national officer of Prospect, said: “The unions have been pushing all the companies bidding for the Sellafield contract to ensure that they regard Sellafield not only as a decommissioning site but also a reprocessing site.

“The importance of reprocessing at Sellafield has increased thanks to the new-build announcement, it is important in terms of nuclear skills and the West Cumbrian economy that investment in reprocessing takes place at the Sellafield site.”