OREANDA-NEWS. April 22, 2014. AREVA welcomes the selection by Sellafield Ltd. of the a.m.a. joint venture, comprised of AREVA and the British companies Mace and Atkins, as the preferred bidder for the Silos Direct-encapsulation Plant (SDP) project.

The SDP project will create a customized waste treatment plant to process legacy materials from Magnox fuel currently present on site.

The a.m.a. joint venture will complete the engineering design, procurement, construction, and commissioning related activities for the facility.

Sellafield Ltd will now enter a period of Preferred Bidder Clarification and confirmation of commitment with AMA whilst the contract is finalised and all legal processes are completed. The final contract award will require approval from the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA).

AREVA will provide to the project its expertise in nuclear facility operations, engineering design and waste management.

This important project for the UK nuclear industry is expected to mobilise several hundred people and will utilize the local supply chain as much as possible.

“AREVA was able to demonstrate the value of its experience in managing end of nuclear fuel cycle activities, especially in Europe and the United States. We are committed to providing the best value to the UK nuclear industry while ensuring that these projects maintain the highest levels of safety, security and environmental performance,” said Dominique Mockly, senior executive vice president, Back End Business Group.

AREVA has been a key partner with the UK nuclear industry over the past three decades and is notably part of the Hinkley Point C nuclear new build project.