Comprehensive Decommissioning International (CDI), the joint venture company between SNC-Lavalin and Holtec International, has won its first commercial contract. Under the contract, which it said is worth "hundreds of millions of dollars", CDI will be responsible for decommissioning, demolishing and cleaning up the site of the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant in New Jersey, USA.

The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approved the transfer of the Oyster Creek licence from Exelon to Holtec in June and plant ownership was transferred on 1 July. CDI says it will be able to start work at the site this year and that it will take less than 10 years to complete thanks to the technologies it will be using and to the fact about 200 former Exelon employees have joined its team.

Kelly Trice, CDI president, said the workforce's knowledge of the local community and the Oyster Creek plant, coupled with CDI's accelerated decommissioning approach will ensure it restores the site for re-use "in the shortest possible time".

Sandy Taylor, president for nuclear at SNC-Lavalin said the contract is "just the beginning" of Camden, New Jersey-based CDI's future in reactor decommissioning.

Taylor added: "We are strong proponents of the future of carbon-free, nuclear power around the world, be it through the industry-leading expertise and technologies that we bring to nuclear new build and life-extending refurbishment projects, however, decommissioning is also becoming a significant part of our business. In the US alone, there are almost 100 nuclear reactors."

Agreements are also in place between Holtec and Entergy for its nuclear units at Indian Point in New York state, Palisades in Michigan and Pilgrimin Massachusetts, in which CDI will be the Decommissioning General Contractor, following each plant’s closure.