The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

27 May 2010

Yesterday Chris Huhne, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change and Charles Hendry, Energy Minister visited Sellafield as part of their drive to acquaint themselves with the UK's key energy infrastructure. They were accompanied by NDA Chief Executive, Tony Fountain and the NDA's Programme Director Ian Hudson.

At Sellafield, and joining Sellafield Ltd MD Bill Poulson and deputy George Beveridge, the party toured the site paying particular attention to major construction projects and legacy ponds and silos. There was also an opportunity to meet local community representatives and union officials to discuss both progress on the clean up and decommissioning mission and the broader Energy Coast agenda.

Commenting on the visit Chris Huhne said:

"The West Cumbria Energy Coast has a critically important role to play in relation to our nuclear legacy and potentially for new build. That's why I was so keen to get up to Sellafield to see the scale of the challenge and find out what we can learn from it for the future. Touring the site I felt a real sense of pride from everyone involved in this work – from the site security team to the engineers, right through to the senior management. And there's a real sense of progress, professionalism and desire to get the job done."

Charles Hendry added:

"This is a most exciting time for the nuclear industry. When I visited the Energy Coast last year I said I wanted West Cumbria to be the foremost centre of nuclear expertise in the world, and what I've seen today reaffirms that view. The level of expertise and skills that the industry possesses here is world-class. And it means that West Cumbria is extremely well placed to benefit from the opportunities that new nuclear build might bring to the area in the years ahead."

Chief Executive, Tony Fountain was delighted with the opportunity to welcome the Secretary of State and Energy Minster to the NDA's significant site so early into their term of office, saying

"Sellafield represents our most complex decommissioning and clean-up challenge and we were pleased to be able to show them the progress that is being made."