Womble Bond Dickinson secures £250k+ contract to advise council on nuclear power

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Copeland Borough Council has appointed Womble Bond Dickinson to a £257,700 contract to provide legal advice in relation to nuclear power, nuclear decommissioning, radioactive waste management and wider energy related issues.

Details: 22.May.2019

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The council has appointed the law firm on a retained basis for a period of four years (plus two potential extension).

Copeland said that, specifically, it might require legal advice and support for the following areas of activity:

nuclear decommissioning of redundant facilities on the Sellafield site;
radioactive waste management at Sellafield and the low level waste repository;
proposals from developers for new nuclear projects;
interaction between the council and the planning inspectorate regarding applications for development consent for major infrastructure projects;
geological disposal infrastructure for management of the UK’s high and intermediate level radioactive waste;
research and development activities related to disposition of the UK’s Plutonium stockpile and the development of small modular reactor;
development management, including but not limited to: negotiation of strategic planning agreements and planning performance agreements, negotiation of community benefits related to new nuclear developments and applications for new nuclear/energy related developments under the Town and Country Planning Act;
national (UK Government) and international nuclear energy and radioactive waste-related policy developments/consultations,
internal and external governance arrangements related to the nuclear industry, radioactive waste management and energy matters,
other new and emerging energy technologies, infrastructure and models for example, electric vehicle infrastructure, etc.

Four tenders were received. The contract was awarded on the basis of quality (weighting: 70%) and price (weighting: 30%).