The Energy Department’s Office of Environmental Management on Wednesday issued a request for information/sources sought notice for completion of nuclear cleanup at the Portsmouth Site in Ohio.
This is part of the office’s market research for a potential solicitation for decontamination and decommissioning at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Piketon. Incumbent Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth in September received its final option period, through March 2021, on its existing 10-year, $3.7 billion contract.
“The purpose of the potential contract will be to achieve completion of the DOE-EM mission at the Portsmouth Site by accomplishing the environmental cleanup in the least amount of time and at the best value to the U.S. taxpayer,” according to the RFI.
The RFI should help the Energy Department gather capability statements from contractors and feedback from potential bidders on “end state” remediation goals that are doable within 10 years.
The RFI on the next contract covers demolition and disposal of all uranium enrichment plant buildings, process equipment, and related facilities, along with cleanup of contaminated soils and groundwater.
An Energy Department timeline calls for demolition of three major process buildings at Portsmouth – X-326, X-333, and X-330 – “complete to slab” by the end of fiscal 2028. These are 1950s vintage buildings initially constructed to enrich uranium for nuclear defense.
The document also says the new contractor would assume operation of the waste disposal cell being developed at Portsmouth. The On-Site Waste Disposal Facility should be receiving waste when the new contractor takes over, DOE said. The department expects the $900 million facility will, starting in fiscal 2021, dispose of 2 million cubic yards of waste with low levels of contamination resulting from demolition at Portsmouth.
When contacted Wednesday, a Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth spokesman, Jack Williams, declined comment on whether the contractor will bid again. “Due to the competitive nature of the contract bid process, FBP does not publicly provide information on the details associated with prospective opportunities.”
The contracting officer for the RFI is Kimberly Tate, [email protected].
Any feedback or questions on the RFI should be submitted by 5 p.m. ET on Dec. 14 to [email protected].
