Nuclear cleanup cost rises by $1 billion

RICHLAND – The estimated cost to build a waste treatment plant at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation has grown by nearly $1 billion, according to a new review by a team of experts.

The new cost estimate stands at $11.3 billion, up from the previous estimate of $10.5 billion and nearly double the $5.8 billion estimated at the start of 2005.

The review, presented to Congress on Monday, was prepared by a team of 16 independent experts hired to assess the credibility of the most recent cost and schedule estimates prepared by Bechtel National, the company hired to build the plant for the U.S. Department of Energy.

Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman ordered the review last year to restore confidence in the project as management, budget and technical problems came to light.

The new review also extended the projected start of operations to July 2018 – more than seven years past the legally required start date of 2011. The last estimate had put the start date at May 2017.

The so-called vitrification plant is being built to treat highly radioactive waste left from decades of plutonium production for the nation’s nuclear weapons arsenal. The waste is currently being stored in 177 underground tanks.