UK-based infrastructure company Costain has been chosen as programme delivery partner by European enrichment company Urenco to deliver new and upgraded infrastructure at its UK site in Capenhurst, Cheshire.
Costain will lead and deliver an integrated programme of Urenco’s infrastructure investment activities, including developing the design, procurement, construction and commissioning of works and upgrades at Capenhurst. This is expected to see contracts awarded to Costain over a minimum of three years.
Urenco’s Capenhurst site provides uranium enrichment services to produce fuel for civil nuclear power stations in the UK and worldwide. The site is undergoing a series of complex work programmes to support the long-term resilience of the site, including establishing Europe’s first High Assay Low Enriched Uranium (HALEU) advanced fuels facility.
Costain will work closely with local supply chain partners and provide strategic direction, integration, assurance and governance of the works. Costain says the programme will also deliver social and economic value to local communities, including supporting the creation of jobs and developing skills across the Northwest of England.
“We’re bringing decades of experience in predictable, best-in-class delivery to help safeguard the UK’s energy security and support the transition to more sustainable energy generation,” said Sam White, Costain’s Managing Director for natural resources. “Costain has a strong presence in the Northwest and this award reinforces our commitment to improving the lives of local communities through the provision of new jobs, developing skills and driving prosperity.”
Costain is delivering a number of critical projects across the UK, including project delivery, design, build, decommissioning, and maintenance of nuclear energy sites.
In January 2024, the UK government announced a £300m ($393m) funding programme to develop a High Assay Low Enriched Uranium (HALEU) industry as part of the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero’s (DESNZ’s) plans to accelerate the development of a civil HALEU commercial market. In May 2024, £196m of the total funding was earmarked for an advanced fuels at Urenco’s Capenhurst enrichment facility, targeting first operations in 2031.
HALEU – uranium enriched to between 5% and 20% uranium-235 – is needed for many of the next-generation reactor designs currently under development. At present, only Russia and China have the infrastructure to produce HALEU at scale.
Urenco is owned one third each by the UK government, the Dutch government, and the major German utilities. It has enrichment facilities in the UK, the Netherlands, Germany and the US. In addition to the expansion project at Capenhurst Urenco is also adding new capacity at its plant in Eunice, New Mexico, in the USA, and at its Almelo plant in the Netherlands. In Germany, at its Gronau site, Urenco is restructuring and upgrading the plant to increase its capacity.
One-third of Urenco’s shares are held by the UK government through Enrichment Investments Limited and one-third by the Dutch government, through Ultra-Centrifuge Nederland NV. In Germany, two utilities, EON SE and RWE AG indirectly hold a third of Urenco’s shares through holding company, Uranit UK Limited.
