NWP Awards Contract to Complete Construction of WIPP Ventilation System

April 21, 2021

Nuclear Waste Partnership (NWP), LLC today awarded a subcontract valued at approximately $163 million to The industrial Company (TIC) to complete construction of the Safety Significant Confinement Ventilation System (SSCVS) at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP).

“We are extremely pleased to bring TIC onboard,” said NWP President and Project Manager Sean Dunagan. “After an exhaustive and thorough procurement process, we believe TIC is the right contractor to complete the largest construction project at WIPP in almost three decades.”

The SSCVS, the largest containment fan system among DOE facilities, provides a modern air supply system designed to run continuously in unfiltered or HEPA filtration mode. The system will provide approximately 540,000 cubic feet per minute (cfm) of air to the underground, significantly more than the 170,000 maximum cfm provided by the current ventilation system.

The increased airflow will allow simultaneous mining, rock bolting, waste emplacement, maintenance, and experimental scientific operations. The permanent ventilation construction project is scheduled to be completed in 2025.

The Industrial Company Executive Vice President John Jennings stated, “TIC is excited to have the opportunity to partner with NWP and complete the construction of the new WIPP Ventilation System. We understand the importance of the safe and efficient completion of the SSCVS project and how it will support the Department of Energy’s mission for the WIPP facility.”

TIC was previously awarded a $500,000 time-and-materials letter contract in September 2020 to assist with transition efforts.

NWP, an Amentum-led partnership with BWX Technologies and Orano, is the management and operating contractor at WIPP.

WIPP is a DOE facility designed to safely isolate defense-related transuranic (TRU) waste from people and the environment. Waste temporarily stored at sites around the country is shipped to WIPP and permanently disposed in rooms mined out of an ancient salt formation 2,150 feet below the surface. WIPP, which began waste disposal operations in 1999, is located 26 miles outside of Carlsbad, N.M.