Radiation Safety and Control Services Inc. (RSCS) and Energy Solutions announced a partnership to decommission the world’s first nuclear-powered merchant ship, the N.S. Savannah.
RSCS-EnergySolutions
RSCS started working with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration in 2007 on Phase 1 decommissioning preparations and completed this phase in early 2021.
The RSCS-Energy Solutions Joint Venture (Nuclear Ship Support Services, LLC) is conducting Phase II and Phase III decommissioning, where remediation is expected to be complete in mid-2023, and License termination is expected to be completed by 2025.
one-of-a-kind reactor
"This ship is designed with a one-of-a-kind reactor and associated support systems," stated Jay Tarzia, Executive Director, RSCS.
Jay Tarzia adds, "The goal of the project is to safely and surgically decommission the ship, maintaining maximum ship integrity to preserve this national historic landmark. To complete this job we have assembled a world-class team with our partners Energy Solutions to achieve this goal."
decommissioning experience
"This is a unique opportunity for Energy Solutions to apply our decommissioning experience to the decommissioning efforts of the N.S. Savannah and we value our partnership with RSCS on this important project," said Ken Robuck, President and CEO of Energy Solutions.
Ken Robuck adds, "We are confident as a team we will safely decommission the Savannah applying lessons learned from our experience at commercial reactor decommissioning projects, while at the same time preserving this national treasure."
N.S. Savannah
An 80 Mw reactor powered the ship, which weighs 9,570 tons with an overall length of 595 feet
A National Historic, Nuclear Engineering and Mechanical Engineering Landmark, the N.S. Savannah was commissioned on July 20, 1956, under President Eisenhower’s 'Atoms for Peace Program'.
The ship, originally constructed under a joint agreement between the U.S. DOT Maritime Division and the Atomic Energy Agency, is currently licensed with the NRC. An 80 Mw reactor powered the ship, which weighs 9,570 tons with an overall length of 595 feet and was operated by a sixty-person crew.
Decommissioning activities
Decommissioning activities include safely removing the control rod drive system, pressurizer, reactor pressure vessel, neutron shield tank, steam generators, primary system piping, reactor vessel, and all primary system components.
All of this material is considered low-level waste and will be safely transported and disposed of at the Energy Solutions 'Clive' disposal facility located in Utah’s West Desert. The joint team will carefully perform the decommissioning to preserve the ship for future use as a museum.