Unit 3 of the Doel nuclear power plant was disconnected from the grid at 9.31pm on 23 September, in accordance with Belgium's legislation on the gradual phase-out of nuclear energy. Doel 3 is the first of seven Belgian reactors to be taken out of service over the coming years.

The UK's Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and the National Decommissioning Centre have signed a three-year collaborative research agreement - the first of its kind between the nuclear and oil and gas decommissioning sectors.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has launched a global initiative aimed at boosting the role of new and emerging technologies in the decommissioning of nuclear facilities.

The Bulk Shielding Reactor - known as Building 3010 - is one of more than a dozen research reactors built at Oak Ridge National Laboratory since the 1950s, and is the first reactor at the Tennessee site to be demolished.
 

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission has amended Cameco's waste facility operating licence for the decommissioned Beaverlodge mine and mill site in northern Saskatchewan as the company prepares for the transfer of 18 properties at the legacy site to provincial control.

Robot technology is being used in preparations for future deactivation and remediation work at the former Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, sharing lessons learned from other decommissioning projects.

Westinghouse has been awarded a USD103 million contract by the US Army Corps of Engineers for the decommissioning, dismantling and disposal of the SM-1A reactor in Alaska.

Ansaldo Nuclear has been awarded a contract for the installation of key connections between existing and new facilities at the Sellafield site in Cumbria, England. It is the first contract awarded under Sellafield Ltd's Programme and Project Partners new goods and services agreement.

EDF Energy announced the Hinkley Point B 1 reactor has been permanently shut down bringing an end to electricity generation at the Hinkley Point B plant in Somerset, England, after 46 years of operation. The Hinkley Point B 2 reactor was shut down on 6 July.

The two VVER-440 V-230 reactors in Slovakia were decommissioned and disassembled on site, the first time this has happened for reactors of this type, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development said.

Westinghouse Electric Company has been awarded an engineering contract by Norwegian Nuclear Decommissioning to plan the decommissioning of the country's two nuclear research reactors, located in Halden and Kjeller. The three-year agreement includes options up to six years and is valued up to NOK1 billion (USD99 million).

Decommissioning of nuclear power plants can take many years and involve complex safety and storage issues. But one firm is doing its best to minimise waste by cleaning up old kit and selling the 'pre-loved' items at auctions.