Sellafield Box Encapsulation Plant (BEP)
Sellafield, Cumbria, UK · 2014-Present · £1.5bn (2024 prices)
The judgement call
Account-gated at launchAims to accelerate the clean-up of Sellafield's legacy ponds and silos. - Waste treatment cell handed over to commissioning ahead of schedule, demonstrating effective project delivery. - Utilizes advanced robotic systems to minimize human exposure to radiation.
Key engineering challenges
Safely processing and encapsulating highly radioactive waste from legacy facilities. - Integrating advanced robotics for remote handling of hazardous materials. - Designing and constructing a facility with stringent containment and shielding requirements. - Managing complex interfaces with existing Sellafield infrastructure.
Project facts
- Client / owner
- Sellafield Ltd, Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA)
- Lead contractor
- —
- Lead designers
- —
- Project type
- new build
- Scale
- Processes and stores nuclear waste, designed to receive and process four packages a day.
- Disciplines
- nuclear; civil; structural; mechanical; electrical; process; robotics; waste management
- Standards & frameworks
- ONR
Sources: GOV.UK: New storage facility at Sellafield takes another step forward (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-storage-facility-at-sellafield-takes-another-step-forward) - RPS Group: Box Encapsulation Plant (BEP), Sellafield (https://www.rpsgroup.com/projects/box-encapsulation-plant-bep-sellafield/) - NucNet: Sellafield Awards £336 Million Box Encapsulation Plant Contract (https://www.nucnet.org/news/sellafield-awards-336-million-box-encapsulation-plant-contract) - NIST: Box Encapsulation Robotics Project (https://www.nist.gov/system/files/documents/2016/08/25/Session3_Presentation4_Shackleford_Robotic-Handling-of-Legacy-Nuclear-Waste-BEP.pdf)