AtomStroyExport buys Nukem Technologies
14 August 2009
Nukem of Germany has announced that it has agreed to sell its Nukem Technologies subsidiary, which specialises in decommissioning, waste management and engineering services, to Russia's AtomStroyExport.
The two companies have signed a contract regarding the sale of the business, the details of which have not been disclosed. Nukem said that it expects the transaction to be completed by the end of 2009.
In a statement, Nukem said that the addition of Nukem Technologies' activities "is an outstanding match for the portfolio of AtomStroyExport." The Russian company’s primary activity is the construction of nuclear power plants abroad, but it is also already involved in decommissioning plants.
Among the current project of Nukem Technologies is the construction of used fuel and radioactive waste facilities at the Kozloduy nuclear power plant in Bulgaria, at the Ignalina plant in Lithuania, at Russia's Leningrad plant and at the Chernobyl plant in Ukraine. It is also constructing the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) fuel production plant in Pelindaba, South Africa.
Dirk Martens, chief financial officer of Nukem, commented: "AtomStroyExport offers our colleagues in the engineering business the chance to further develop their activities and markets." He added, "Jobs at Nukem Technologies are secured and can be expanded in connection with the global renaissance of nuclear energy."
Nukem said that it would now concentrate on its core business, the supply of nuclear fuel services. The company, together with its US subsidiary Nukem Inc, markets nuclear fuel components, conversion services, enriched uranium and reprocessed uranium to utilities worldwide, as well as specialty products, such as beryllium and isotopes. In addition, Nukem is one of the three Western companies that markets uranium derived from Russian weapons-grade high enriched uranium (HEU) as part of the HEU "Feed" Agreement between the US and Russian governments.
The sale of its Nukem Technologies subsidiary is the latest in a series of divestments since Nukem was acquired in 2006 by private equity group Advent International from RWE. In May 2007, the company announced the sale of its UK subsidiary, Nukem Ltd, to Freyssinet SAS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Vinci Construction. The following month, Nukem sold its US subsidiary Nukem Corp to EnergySolutions. Nukem Technologies sold its NIS Division to Siempelkamp Nukleartechnik in October 2007.