Location of numerous nuclear facilities in Cumbria, England. At the Sellafield location, the reprocessingApplication of chemical processes to separate the valuable s... plant THORPThermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant, Sellafield, Lake Distri... is in operation since 1994, and the four gas-graphite reactors of the nuclear power plantThermal power plant, primarily used for electricity generati... Calder HallThe world's first commercial nuclear power plant in Seascale... have been operated from 1956 till 2003. Part of the Sellafield location is known under the name Windscale where an incidentSequence of events, on occurrence of which plant operation o... occurred in one of the two military plutoniumPlutonium - the 94th element in the classification of elemen... reactors in 1957.
As of August 2020, activities at the site include nuclear fuelIn accordance with the definition of the German Atomic Energ...fuel reprocessingThe chemical treatment of nuclear fuel after its use in a re..., nuclear waste storage and nuclear decommissioning, and it is a former nuclear power generating site. The site covers an area of two square miles and comprises more than 200 nuclear facilities and more than 1,000 buildings.
The site currently directly employs about 10,000 people and is owned by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) which is a non-departmental public body of the UK government. Following a periodreactor period 2008-2016 of management by a private consortium, the site has been returned to direct government control by making the Site Management Company, Sellafield Ltd, a subsidiary of the NDA.
The 2018-2021 NDA business plan for Sellafield decommissioning is focused on these high hazards and includes the following key activities in the area of Legacy Ponds and Silos;
- Pile FuelSee 'nuclear fuel'. Storage Pond: Sustain sludge exports and prepare for de-watering
- Pile FuelSee 'nuclear fuel'. CladdingTightly bound (usually metallic) casing directly surrounding... Silo: Complete commissioning of Box Encapsulation Plant to received silo contents, and begin retrievals.
- First Generation MagnoxCladding tube material in graphite-moderated, gas-cooled rea... Storage Pond: Continue to retrieve fuelSee 'nuclear fuel'. and sludge.
- MagnoxCladding tube material in graphite-moderated, gas-cooled rea... Swarf Storage Silo: Begin retrievals from the silo.
The site is due to be fully decommissioned by 2120 at a cost of £121bn