Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 2
2
The uncertainty affecting the Magnox sites reflects a wider uncertainty about the costs and timetable...
Conclusion
The uncertainty affecting the Magnox sites reflects a wider uncertainty about the costs and timetable of decommissioning the whole civil nuclear estate. According to the NDA’s most recent estimates it will cost the UK taxpayer £132 billion to decommission the UK’s civil nuclear sites and the NDA estimates that the work will not be completed for another 120 years. The largest proportion of this cost is to clean up and decommission the NDA’s largest site at Sellafield, but the cost to decommission the NDA’s Magnox sites is also substantial, as is the liability associated with decommissioning the next family of nuclear power stations, known as the Advanced Gas-Cooled Reactors (AGRs). The money held in the Nuclear Liabilities Fund, which exists to fund the decommissioning of the AGRs specifically, was increased from £9.5 billion by an additional £5.07 billion this year to reflect the latest estimate of the work required. The NDA is consulting publicly about its strategy for cleaning up its nuclear sites. It may be possible to reduce the time it will take to fully decommission the sites of former nuclear power stations from around 85 years to more like 40–45 years. This could significantly reduce the long-term cost of decommissioning the sites as 40% of the overall decommissioning cost can be spent in maintaining, operating and safeguarding the sites while decommissioning activity is taking place. There is also an opportunity to save taxpayers’ money by accelerating the programme to create a deep storage facility, known as the Geological Disposal Facility, to store highly radioactive waste that is currently held 6 The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s management of the Magnox contract at interim facilities at Sellafield and the sites of former power stations elsewhere in the UK. The NDA and the Department are consulting the relevant regulators and interested communities to identify a suitable site for such a facility, but were not able to indicate a timeframe in which
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
2: PAC conclusion: The uncertainty affecting the Magnox sites reflects a wider uncertainty about the costs and timetable of decommissioning the whole civil nuclear estate. 2a: PAC recommendation: Taking into account the feedback from its public consultation, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority should exploit opportunities to reduce the time taken to decommission its sites and should identify the impact of such reductions on the cost profile. 2. 1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: Summer 2021 2.2 The NDA is charged with the mission to clean-up the UK’s earliest nuclear sites safely, securely and cost-effectively. 21 2.3 In April 2019, it launched One NDA. The One NDA approach to working is firmly based on maximising the opportunities that come from working more effectively and efficiently as a group of businesses. 2.4 The benefits it is striving to achieve from the One NDA approach are: • Increased value for money for the taxpayer • Enhanced performance and delivery of outcomes • Strong organisational health • Improved stakeholder confidence and trust • Improved culture for our people 2.5 The NDA seeks opportunities to reduce the time and cost of its decommissioning activities at all of its sites. It examines and revises its strategy on a regular basis to look at better ways of approaching its mission. The example given in 1.4 and 1.5 above in relation to the revised approach to decommissioning the Magnox sites provides an indication of its work to optimise its portfolio of work. 2.6 While the NDA expects the new site-specific decommissioning strategies to be defined over the next 12 to 18 months, they will be continuously reviewed and optimised using the learning obtained from the sites being decommissioned. 2.7 The NDA will report back to the Committee following publication of the new strategy. The NDA and Magnox Limited will subsequently update the lifetime plans for the Magnox sites. The NDA’s key document setting out dates for decommissioning is its Business Plan which is updated annually in the Spring. The edition of the Business Plan published in Spring 2021 will take account of the Committee’s recommendations and as set out in the answer to section 1.4 to 1.7, further data on indicative timing and expenditure will be published in the Business Plan for 2022 and will be confirmed in future spending reviews. 2b: PAC recommendation: The department and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority should take whatever steps are necessary to provide a firmer estimate of the cost of decommissioning the sites of the Advanced Gas-Cooled Reactors so that the public has a more reliable indicator of the scale of the public liability. 2.8 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: Summer 2021 2.9 The department will continue to work with the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) and EDF to understand the scale of the liability for decommissioning the Advanced-Gas-Cooled Reactor stations (AGRs). 2.10 The AGRs are owned and operated by EDF Energy, which under existing contractual arrangements is responsible for submitting plans for decommissioning activities and estimating costs. The decommissioning of the stations will be funded by the Nuclear Liabilities Fund (NLF), a segregated fund managed by trustees and underwritten by the government. The NDA is responsible for scrutinising and approving EDF Energy’s decommissioning plans and certifying that costs qualify for payment by the NLF. EDF Energy, NLF and BEIS annual reports each contain estimates of the costs of decommissioning the AGRs (and the Pressurised Water Reactor at Sizewell B, also owned and operated by EDF Energy) – all derived from EDF’s decommissioning plans. 2.11 The department is undertaking further work with EDF Energy and the NDA to consider how efficient and cost-effective decommissioning can be planned for and delivered in the future. This includes consideration of how the stations will be owned and managed in the future and is expected to conclude in Spring 2021. 2c: PAC recommendation: The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and the department should make it a priority to progress their plans to find a location for a Geological Disposal Facility in order to reduce interim storage costs at Sellafield and elsewhere, and should confirm when they consider such a Facility might feasibly become available for the storage of waste. 22 2.12 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented 2.13 The NDA and the government agree that it is a priority to identify a location for a geological disposal facility. A process to identify a location is currently underway. The Authority expects a geological disposal facility to be operational by the 2040s. 2.14 In addition, the NDA is examining the technical feasibility of disposing of a proportion of less hazardous radioactive waste currently stored at Sellafield in a near surface disposal