The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

NDA Sites Monthly Performance Update

General Evaluation - Key Elements

• Work is being delivered for less than expected costs.
• The overall NDA programme is behind schedule.
• Year to date electricity generation is below target.

For financial year 2007/8 with the exception of Sellafield plans are not over pressured. Work is ongoing to assess the funding requirements for Sellafield.

Financial year 2007/8 efficiency targets have been set and the monitoring programme has started.

Year to Date Cost and Schedule Performance
At the end of September 2007, the programme delivered work for less than expected costs. Measured against the year to date budget the programme of work at the end of September is behind schedule.

Please note: We use Earned Value Performance Management to measure programme performance. This compares the budgeted cost of work that was scheduled with the budgeted cost of work that was actually performed to determine schedule performance and the budgeted cost  of work actually performed with its actual cost to determine cost performance.

Year to date electricity generation at the fleet of Magnox nuclear reactors operated by the NDA was below target at the end of September 2007. Electricity generation for the month was below target.

Items of Interest

Key Elements

• Calder Hall Cooling Towers were safely demolished on 29 September.
• A major site risk is removed at Sellafield due to progress made on the Sealine Bridge Refurbishment Project.
• Fewer Intermediate Level Waste (ILW) items from Vault A1 at Trawsfynydd will require storage than first anticipated.
• Dungeness A deals with the disposal of diverse CO2 tanks in an environmentally sound and cost effective way.
• At Sizewell A the ponds are now completely empty of fuel.
• At Hinkley Point A the first authorisation of bulk shipments to be granted under new the New Long Term Management of Solid Low Level Radioactive Waste Policy occurred.
• Delays to the start of sustained shearing at the Sellafield THORP plant have been experienced.
• Effluents and Encapsulation Plants at Sellafield have a difficult month.
• Delays have been experienced on the Gantry Refurbishment System (GRS) safety case within Legacy Ponds and Silos.
• Risks to the acceleration of Vault 9 construction at the Low Level Waste Repository (LLWR) are highlighted.
• At Dungeness A Phase 3 cooling is unlikely to be achieved in financial year 2006/7.

At Dungeness A the last of the diverse CO2 tanks left site for refurbishment in Scotland. This is an environmentally sound option and it is also a cost effective means for disposal of the tanks. Both CO2 tanks, each weighing 40 tonnes, were made ready for transportation as part of the self-performed work undertaken by teams from Projects, Site Infrastructure, Health Physics and Waste Management.

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At Sizewell A, during the period, 10 tonnes of fuel was despatched off site. This has now left the ponds completely empty of fuel. The site is currently reviewing activities that need to be undertaken to enable accelerated ponds decommissioning.

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The Environment Agency has authorised the shipment of up to 235 tonnes of contaminated steel (pond skips) from Hinkley Point A to Energy Solutions in the United States of America (USA). The skips are to be recycled as shield blocks for other nuclear facilities. A trial of 30 skips from the ponds at Hinkley Point A was sent to the USA in December 2006. This trial tested the regulatory framework for the movement of such materials to another country with no return of any waste. National policy allows such a movement if the material is destined for re-use. This achievement opens up a new disposal (recycling) route for all NDA sites. This is the first authorisation of bulk shipments to be granted under the new Long Term Management of Solid Low Level Radioactive Waste Policy.

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Delays to the start of sustained shearing at the Sellafield THORP plant have been experienced due to issues with Evaporator capacity. August 2007 saw the completion of the initial campaign of Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor (AGR) fuel. Future shearing in financial year 2007/8 is currently forecast to restart at the beginning of 2008.

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Effluents and Encapsulation Plants at Sellafield have had a difficult month. This has been due to a number of reasons:-

• The Magnox Encapsulation Plant (MEP) continues to be under the supervision of engineering support during processing. The system is now showing signs of bedding in but is still suffering from clamping issues.
• The Waste Encapsulation Plant (WEP) remains behind schedule, driven through lack of feed from THORP.
• B241 remains shutdown due to a pump seal flush system contamination. Modifications are expected to be carried out during October 2007, allowing restart of operation in November 2007.
• At the Solvent Treatment Plant (STP) production is at full capacity but is being constrained by Magnox feeds into the Enhanced Actinide Removal Plant (EARP).

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Within Legal Ponds and Silos at Sellafield the submission date for the B30 pond area Gantry Refurbishment System (GRS) safety case has been delayed due to recategorisation to Cat B. There has also been a delay in placing the contract. Project management costs will be higher until the GRS safety case is approved due to additional support.

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As reported last month, Vault 9 construction at the Low Level Waste Repository (LLWR) has been accelerated and is now due to start 6 months earlier than in Life Time Plan (LTP) 07. The main risks to achievement of the accelerated Vault 9 programme are delays in finalising incorporation of the NDA community benefit package into the planning application and uncertainty in the supply chain regarding contract placement in light of the imminent transition to a new Parent Body Organisation (PBO). Work is in hand to address both of these areas. The result is a slight delay in consideration of the planning application by the planning authority. This is now scheduled to go before committee at either the November or December 2007 meeting. LLWR is supporting NDA and the planning authorities to facilitate a timely resolution.

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At Dungeness A analysis of the reactor natural circulation test in June along with further computer modelling work, has indicated that Phase 3 cooling is unlikely to be achieved this calendar year, and may not be achieved until March 2008. The delay in moving to Phase 3 is due to the fact that the site has not been able to remove fuel from the reactors. The full implications of the delay are currently being assessed.

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Safety and Environment Performance

Safety and Environment - Key Elements

• 1 INES Level 1 event concerning high internal radiation dose at Sellafield.
• 1 RIDDOR reportable event at Sellafield. This is the lowest number in any period since NDA began monitoring common safety metrics at the start of 2006/7.
• All of the licensed sites owned by NDA have maintained a Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) of less than 1.0 in the 12 month rolling period up until September.

Dosimetry is the measurement of absorbed dose in matter and tissue resulting from the exposure to ionizing radiations.

Nuclear Safety

One event, provisionally rated at Level 1 on the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES), has been reported as occurring at NDA sites during the period.

• At Sellafield, internal biological sampling results have indicated that a contractor has received an internal radiation dose which could exceed the annual whole body dose limit of 20 millisieverts (mSv). Further biological sampling is being undertaken. It will be several weeks before the confirmed dose is available.

Dosimetry

The sites provide data on average individual dose, maximum individual dose and collective dose. These metrics are measured separately for SLC employees and for contractors. Note that the dose is measured by a dosimeter which has to be processed before the dose can be added to the record. Therefore dose figures always lag behind the current date. Dose figures are reported by calendar year rather than financial year and the graphs below present the latest figures for dosimeters worn by workers in calendar year 2007 to date. Individual average and maximum doses should be compared with the legal annual limit of 20 mSv.

Industrial Health and Safety

One RIDDOR event was reported to have occurred in the period. This is the lowest number in any period in the 18 months since NDA began monitoring common safety metrics at the start of 2006/7.

RIDDOR stands for the reporting of injuries diseases and dangerous occurrences regulations 1995. RIDDOR '95 requires the reporting of work-related accidents, diseases and dangerous occurrences. It applies to all work activities, but not to all incidents.

Environmental Protection

No environmental non-compliances have been reported this period.

An Environmental Non Compliance is a breach of a permit condition set by the Environment Agency or the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency that prevents or controls risk of pollution to the environment..

Safety and Environmental Achievements

All of the licensed sites owned by NDA have maintained a Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) of less than 1.0 in the 12 month rolling period up until period 6, with four sites now having a 12 month rolling TRIR of zero. For comparison, from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) website, the average TRIR in the United States of America (USA) construction and manufacturing industries is 6.3.

The cooling tower demolition project at Chapelcross has practically completed the separation of the steel reinforcing bar from the concrete debris. A total of 1390 tonnes of steel reinforcing bar has been extracted from the rubble and sent for recycling.

The four cooling towers at Calder Hall were safely demolished on Saturday 29 September. The towers collapsed as planned within their existing footprint with minimal debris outside that area. Work is now in hand to crush the concrete, recover the reinforcing bar for recycling and return the crushed concrete to the pond basins.

The Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) is a measure of the number of injuries and illnesses that occur as a rate compared against the number of hours worked.

Please note
We give the actual number of occurrences in each category. Not all sites employ the same number of people and/or undertake the same activities. This must be taken into account before comparisons between sites can be made.