US-based Jacobs said that it had won two new contracts to support the Czech nuclear sector with radioactive waste management services.

National utility CEZ has selected Jacobs's SIAL geopolymer encapsulation technology to solidify 250 metric tons of low and intermediate-level radioactive sludge at the Dukovany NPP. Jacobs will treat the sludge, currently held in storage tanks at the plant, and encapsulate it in 200-litre drums ready for transport to long-term storage. The work, carried out at a specially assembled on-site unit, is expected to take five years.

In addition, Súrao, the Czech Republic's Radioactive Waste Repository Authority, has appointed Jacobs to a safety assessment and technical advice framework for its planned deep geological repository. Last December, the Czech government approved a shortlist of four potential locations for the repository together with a schedule calling for the site to be selected by 2030 and operational by 2065. This contract complements Jacobs' work supporting radioactive waste repositories in the UK, Finland, Sweden and Belgium.

"Our previous experience was key to winning these two contracts, which strengthen our position in important radioactive waste management programs in the Czech Republic," said Jacobs Energy, Security and Technology Senior Vice President Karen Wiemelt. "These contracts not only support the Czech government's vision for the future of the country, but also help create a more sustainable and safer world."