The Department of Energy said Tuesday a California-based company that plans a major enrichment plant in Paducah, Ky., will use a longtime nuclear facility at the Hanford Site in Washington state as part of its efforts.
In a Tuesday press release, DOE’s Office of Environmental Management said it has teamed up with the nuclear fuel company General Matter for potential use of Hanford’s Fuels and Materials Examination Facility (FMEF) – 190,000-square-foot facility built to support DOE’s fast liquid breeder reactor program.
But the structure has never been used for any nuclear work and has not supported a DOE mission since 1993, DOE said in the release.
General Matter has said a DOE lease for the facility that the local Tri-City Herald newspaper described as a “hulking, forgotten” nuclear building at Hanford.
“With the lease signed, General Matter will first undertake the evaluations necessary to assess returning the facility to service, including site characterization, potential facility upgrades, and engagement with community leaders and stakeholders,” an Environmental Management spokesperson said in an email response to Exchange Monitor.
“DOE negotiated a fair market rental rate for the leased property based on other industrial use properties in the area,” the DOE spokesperson said. Any rent paid by General Matter under the lease will go to the Treasury in accordance with current law, making the old structure a “revenue generator for the American people,” the spokesperson said.
A startup company, General Matter burst onto the nuclear scene last August announcing plans for $1.5 billion enrichment plant at the DOE’s Paducah Site in Kentucky. General Matter is headed by Scott Nolan, a former executive with SpaceX.
On a related note, Washington Energy LLC, a business entity that General Matter established for certain work in Washington’s state’s Tri-Cities area, is negotiating with Richland, Wash., City Council, to secure 425 acres in the Northwest Advanced Clean Energy Park.
DOE said in the Tuesday press release that the partnership holds promise for rebuilding the nation’s domestic nuclear fuel supply chain.
“FMEF can be transformed into an asset to unleash American energy dominance and drive innovation, while building prosperity and vitality for the people of Central Washington,” DOE Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management Tim Walsh said in the press release. Walsh toured the facility at Hanford in November.
“Activating FMEF for a modern mission reflects responsible stewardship and forward momentum for the site,” said Ray Geimer, manager for DOE’s Hanford Field Office. “This lease puts an asset back to work for the American people and reinforces the department’s commitment to safe revitalization across the Hanford footprint.”