The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

NDA Documents Hierarchy

13 March 2008

The Energy Act 2004 provides the legal basis for the existence of the NDA. It defines its constitution, specifies its responsibilities and outlines its duties and functions. In particular the Act details the requirements for production of all major documents such as the Strategy, Business Plan and Annual Report, including the required contents where relevant.

Management Statement and Financial Memorandum (MSFM)

These documents set out the terms of the relationship between the NDA and the Department of Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), our sponsoring Government department. Between them they detail the statutory framework within which the NDA operates, its reporting relationship with BERR and the Scottish Government as well as the systems and processes that the NDA is required to have in place to demonstrate proper governance. Amongst these is the requirement for the NDA to be open and transparent in its dealings, and to engage fully with stakeholders including involvement in the production of its Strategy and Business Plan.

NDA Strategy

 

The NDA is required periodically to produce a “Strategy” as specified in the Energy Act 2004. This document brings together individual topic strategies setting out how the NDA will deliver its remit and carry out its functions. The required contents are detailed in the Act but in effect this document sets direction for the business and defines the approach that the NDA will take in discharging its remit via the Lifetime Plans.

Its production is accompanied by a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of individual topic strategies including the assessment of alternative options. Both the Environmental report and the draft Strategy are subject to public consultation after which the Strategy is submitted for approval by Ministers. The current document was produced in the first year of NDA’s existence and was published in March 2006.

The Energy Act 2004 requires the Strategy to be reviewed at least every five years.

Business Plan

The three year rolling Business Plan has replaced the Annual Plan as a statutory document which sets out in detail what work the NDA plans to do in a given financial year, and for what expenditure. The Plan is produced from the perspective of the NDA but is informed by the Lifetime Plan for each site. It reflects the approved Strategy, is subject to full public consultation and must be approved by Ministers. Approval of the Plan effectively sets the annual budget, as agreed with BERR/Treasury, and is aligned with the funding settlement under the Comprehensive Spending Review. Any work done under the Business Plan will inform, and may ultimately result in a variation to the Strategy.

Lifetime Plans

The Lifetime Plan is produced by the site contractor to meet a contractual requirement of the NDA, and is revised annually. It gives details of the planned activities and costs of the work required to fully decommission the site to an agreed end state. The combination of all Lifetime Plans across the NDA estate yields the total cost of dealing with the NDA’s liabilities.

Annual Report and Accounts

The Annual Report and Accounts must be produced each year and laid before Parliament prior to publication. As for any normal company, this document reports our achievements for the year in question (as measured against the Business Plan and the approved Strategy in force) and details our financial position at the year end. Inevitably, progress reported in the Annual Report will impact on Lifetime Plans and may also inform the Strategy going forward.