News

Jacobs joint venture to plan Norway nuclear decommissioning program

The JEEP-II facility at Kjeller - image courtesy of the Institute for Energy Technology

A joint venture between Jacobs and Multiconsult Norge AS has been selected to plan the decommissioning of Norway’s nuclear facilities.

Norsk Nukleær Dekommisjonering (NND) chose the joint venture for the framework contract which will initially focus on two research sites - the nuclear fuel and materials testing reactor at Halden and the JEEP-II neutron scattering facility at Kjeller, which were shut down in 2018 and 2019, respectively. 

The Jacobs/Multiconsult JV was ranked highest in competitive bidding and will have first option to carry out work. NND estimates the total value of the six-year, multi-award framework at up to $100m. 

The scope includes engineering concept design and planning of new facilities, upgrading of existing nuclear and non-nuclear facilities and supporting NND with technical documentation, as well as preparing safety cases to meet ownership and operating license requirements.

“This important contract expands our footprint in the European nuclear decommissioning market, which is estimated at $63bn by 2025,” said Jacobs energy, security and technology senior vice president Karen Wiemelt. 

“Laying the foundations for a safe and effective clean-up will protect people and the environment and enable these two sites to be used for other purposes for decades to come.” 

NND chief technology officer Nils Bøhmer added: “The decommissioning of the nuclear facilities in Norway is a complicated assignment, and NND is pleased to see that there is a big interest from both international and local/national suppliers to assist NND in this task. 

“NND welcomes the international decommissioning experience that Jacobs brings onboard and acknowledge that it will be of valuable help for NND. At the same time, we also greatly appreciate the Norwegian experience that Multiconsult Norge AS has, which means that the two companies will be a strong partner for NND in the coming years.” 

The overall program for used fuel treatment and decommissioning of the Halden and Kjeller reactors is expected to cost about $1.96bn and take 20-25 years.

If you would like to contact Karen McLauchlan about this, or any other story, please email kmclauchlan@infrastructure-intelligence.com.