OREANDA-NEWS. Westinghouse Electric Company today said that the selection of its project team for a major U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) environmental management contract will leverage the company’s strong nuclear energy technologies and site management capabilities, while also signaling its intent to re-enter the government services marketplace.

The DOE today awarded to the team, comprised of Westinghouse, Atkins and Fluor, a $318 million, five-year contract to operate the depleted uranium hexafluoride (DUF6) conversion facilities at DOE’s Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Paducah, Ky., and Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Piketon, Ohio. The companies will conduct the work through their fully integrated joint venture, Mid-America Conversion Services, LLC.

“This DOE contract award is the start of the next chapter in Westinghouse’s long history of managing nationally strategic resources. We are excited to return to this important arena. Westinghouse has much to offer to government customers, and we look forward to creating real value for them through our technologies and our constant focus on safety, quality and excellence in all operations,” said Jos? Emeterio Guti?rrez, Westinghouse interim president and CEO.

The project includes the operation of DUF6 conversion facilities for the purpose of processing DOE’s inventory of stored DUF6, a coproduct of the uranium enrichment process. The facilities convert DUF6 to depleted uranium oxide for possible future reuse, storage or disposal.

“Westinghouse and its partners are committed to the safe, successful operation of the Paducah and Portsmouth DUF6 facilities, and we are eager to engage with the local workforces and communities to meet the project goals at both plant locations. With our decades of leadership in applying nuclear technologies and managing major nuclear operations, Westinghouse welcomes the opportunity to put its experience and capabilities to work on this DOE project,” said David Durham, Westinghouse senior vice president and leader over its government services business.