The public spending watchdog accused NDA of committing basic flaws in the Magnox contract exercise carried out between 2012 and 2014 to decommission two nuclear research sites and 10 nuclear sites.
In March, the UK government terminated the 14-year Magnox contract it had awarded to the Cavendish Fluor Partnership after the projected decommissioning cost of the nuclear sites shot up to £6bn from the original figure of £3.8bn.
This was due to more-than-expected volumes of radioactive waste among other factors at the nuclear sites, as per a report in Financial Times.
Cavendish Fluor Partnership, a joint venture between Babcock International’s Cavendish Nuclear and Fluor had mutually agreed with NDA to scrap their contract nine years ahead of the original schedule of 2028.
The contract will end in August 2019 following a favorable High Court ruling for the consortium of Energy Solutions and Bechtel which was unsuccessful in the contract bidding.
Energy Solutions and Bechtel, which had accused NDA of improper handling of the contract, were awarded £97.3m by NDA to settle their legal claims.
National Audit Office Head Amyas Morse said: “The NDA's fundamental failures in the Magnox contract procurement raise serious questions about its understanding of procurement regulations; its ability to manage large, complex procurements; and why the errors detected by the High Court judgement were not identified earlier.
“In light of these issues, the Department must consider whether its governance and oversight arrangements surrounding the NDA are sufficiently clear and effective in providing the scrutiny and assurance it requires to meet the standards expected in managing public money.”
Image: The Bradwell nuclear site in Essex which is included in the Magnox nuclear clean-up contract. Photo: courtesy of Crown.
