Lifetime strategy
Oldbury will continue to generate electricity until the end of 2010. In parallel, we are preparing the site for decommissioning with defuelling scheduled to start in July 2011.
The current preferred strategy for decommissioning Oldbury like all UK Magnox nuclear power stations is deferred site clearance, allowing for total site clearance around 85 years after cessation of generation. It minimises risk to workers, public and the environment, minimises waste volumes, is technically straight forward and makes financial sense.
Magnox North is applying its knowledge and expertise to accelerate the decommissioning work plan which doesn’t preclude a reduction in the 85-year period to total site clearance.
The operational and decommissioning plan at Olbury
1967-2010 Electricity Generation
- Operate the station safely whilst maximising generation and income
- Receive fuel receipts from the Springfields fuel manufacturing site
- Prompt dispatch of fuel flasks to Sellafield for irradiated fuel reprocessing
- Completion of around 22,000 separate maintenance activities per year while the station is operating
- Production of Post Operational and Defuelling Safety Case
- Management of low level waste and dispatch to the national Low Level Waste Repository in West Cumbria
- Treatment and storage of intermediate level waste on site
- Removal of non hazardous wastes in line with our ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ policy
- Preparatory work to ensure a seamless transition into decommissioning
- Enhancement of fuel route plant and processes to facilitate defuelling
2011-2014 Defuelling
- Removal of 53,000 irradiated fuel elements from the reactors and storage ponds and dispatch to Sellafield for reprocessing
- Maintenance of plant and systems to support defuelling
- Isolation and segregation where necessary of redundant plant and systems
2014-2027 Preparation for Care & Maintenance
- Building of a waste store for the treatment and packaging of Intermediate-Level Waste (ILW) that has accumulated in storage vaults on the site during generation operations
- Completion of all waste management, dismantling and demolition work, removing most radioactive and non-radioactive plant and buildings
- Safestore building construction – reducing the reactor building in height to minimise the environmental impact and placing it into a passive, safe and secure state
2027-2095 Care & Maintenance
- Site monitored for reactor conditions and security as the radioactivity inside the reactors naturally decays
- Radiological and environmental monitoring
- Regular inspection of site conditions and buildings and maintenance where necessary
- Land management and maintenance
- All stored packaged waste transported for permanent disposal off site
2096-2101 Final Site Clearance
- Deplanting and dismantling of the remaining site utilities, facilities and buildings
- Land remediation including landscaping and planting
- Site delicenced and returned, clean and safe for future use
