The UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) honoured five award winners earlier in January at its tenth supply chain event – among the largest supply chain events in Europe. Emma Ferguson-Gould, NDA Group Commercial and Business Development Officer, noted that the NDA’s mission to safely decommission the UK’s legacy nuclear sites, is delivered by over 17,000 people within the group working at 17 sites across the UK, covering over 900 different roles. Additionally, NDA has over 5,000 organisations in its supply chain.
“An event like this is our chance to bring together the fantastic companies we collaborate with, showcase their success, how they support the NDA group, and attract new businesses to the nuclear decommissioning sector, particularly small-medium enterprises (SMEs),” she said.
The supply chain event that was initially launched in 2011 with 700 people attending, now attracts more than 10,000 visitors, representing thousands of companies.
“A particular part of the event that is a highlight for me, is our supply chain awards. These awards not only demonstrate how important the supply chain is to our mission but showcase the variety of innovative work being delivered by businesses throughout the UK and beyond on the NDA’s behalf.”
The five latest award winners, announced in November, were honoured at the 2025 supply chain event. These were:
- Best approach to achieving social value – The Decommissioning Delivery Partnership;
- Best approach to environmental sustainability – Morgan Sindall Infrastructure;
- Best example of applying creative and innovative solutions – PA Consulting for harnessing AI at Sellafield Ltd;
- Best example of delivering excellence through collaboration – The Higher Activity Waste Thermal Treatment (HAWTT) Tranche 1 Team; and
- Best small and medium enterprise – Antech
The HAWTT programme is led by Sellafield Limited, sponsored and directly funded by both the NDA and Nuclear Waste Services (NWS). This consortium which won the “best example of delivering excellence through collaboration” includes Cavendish Nuclear Limited, Red Engineering, National Nuclear Laboratories, Cerberus AtkinsRealis and Tetronics.
Andrew Jarratt, Head of Projects at the HAWTT programme said the project has brought together an array of different companies from all over the UK to deliver the first step in a potentially game-changing technology for the treatment of plutonium contaminated wastes in the UK. “This was done in a remarkably short time and with a tight budget. The team have faced significant challenges and it is testament to the collaborative working practices and team ethos that these have been overcome and the trials programme successfully initiated.”
Under its contract with Sellafield, UK-based Tetronics, which specialises in plasma arc systems, designed, developed and manufactured a plasma arc rig to stabilise, vitrify and significantly reduce the volume of higher active waste from the nuclear sector. This contract was part of Tranche 1 of the HAWTT programme, which is focussed primarily on solid, Plutonium Contaminated Materials (PCM).
The HAWTT Tranche 1 trials were delivered in three phases throughout 2024:
- Trial 1 – process validation, based on surrogate wastes including clothing, rags, consumables and small components;
- Trial 2 – process optimisation, focussed on increasing waste throughput and achieving optimal layering within the vitrified (glass-like) end product;
- Trial 3 – final product, melting thirty-seven 200 litre drums of analogous waste (containing a Cerium marker) into a crucible container to fit inside a 3 cubic metre box.
In July and December 2024 Tetronics and key consortium partners, hosted high level representatives from six nuclear stakeholders at its full-scale prototype rig in Swindon, UK: NDA, Nuclear Waste Services, Nuclear Restoration Services, Office for Nuclear Regulation, Nuclear Security Technologies and Sellafield Limited.
Many higher active wastes – ranging from contaminated construction materials and clothing to consumables and packaging – have traditionally been treated by physical compaction alone, followed by encapsulation in a cement-based grout within 200-litre drums.
Tetronics’ technology both reduces the volume and enhances the stability of radioactive waste before final geological disposal. Assessments indicate that the likely lifetime cost savings of using plasma vitrification to stabilise radioactive materials amounts to billions of dollars globally. More specifically, Tetronics believes that such volume reduction will help to meet the UK Nuclear Sector Deal’s target for a 20% decrease in decommissioning costs by 2030.
Tectronics said positive stakeholder feedback has already led to a further contract, from Sellafield, for a fourth phase trialling items larger than 200 litre drums to demonstrate large scale thermal capability. Longer term, Tetronics has agreed to keep its plasma arc rig available for additional trials over the next two years.
Graeme Rumbol, Tetronics CEO, said: “I am immensely proud to share in the NDA’s excellence in collaboration award and would like to thank both Tetronics’ own team and our consortium partners for such positive HAWTT trial results. Combined with strong feedback from the six government agencies who visited our Swindon facility in 2024, we believe that large scale thermal treatment, including plasma, is ideally placed for the NDA’s upcoming case for change white paper.”
