§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of Stae for Energy what proposals have been submitted to him for a plutonium recovery plant on a 60-acre site adjacent to facilities at Windscale, Cumbria; and what is the expected capacity of the unit and the date of completion.
§ Mr. Giles ShawI have been asked to reply.
I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to the hon. Member for Edinburgh, Central (Mr. Cork) on 16 February by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Energy—[Vol. 999, c. 26–27.] I do not yet know whether the application for planning permission will come before my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State.
I understand that waste would be handled in the proposed unit at a rate of about 100 tonnes per annum. Process residues would be treated as they arose, at an estimated rate of a few hundred kilogrammes per year. The unit would be likely to come into operation in about 10 years time.