Notice

HALEU deconversion competition: clarification questions

Updated 19 July 2024

Clarification questions (added 19 July 2024)

Could the deadline for clarification questions be extended?

The date for clarification questions has been extended until 5 September 5pm. Questions received after this date may not be responded to.

Additionally, we have extended the deadline for Expressions of Interest until 5 September 5pm.

Is it possible to extend the deadline for submissions?

The submission date remains the 9 September 12pm. If an applicant feels there is sufficient justification to request an extension they can email HALEU@energysecurity.gov.uk with this request. Any request should detail why this is necessary and the benefits it could bring to the competition. There are no guarantees that an extension will be granted and any extension that is granted will apply to all applicants.

Any changes to the dates of the competition will be published on the official GOV.UK page.

Is it possible to extend the page limits for submissions?

The Department intends to keep page limits as currently set out in the guidance. The available page limit will be factored into the scoring of each section.

When will the economic assessment workshop take place?

We will be running a workshop on completing the economic spreadsheet template on Monday 22 July 11am to 12pm. If you would like to attend this, please email HALEU@energysecurity.gov.uk with the names and email addresses of those who would like to attend.

When are the bid results expected?

We are aiming to assess the bids in the autumn. This will then be followed by due diligence. We expect to be able to formally announce the winner towards the end of this year to early next year, depending on how long the due diligence process takes. We will provide more specific dates nearer the time.

Will it be possible to change the grant terms and conditions?

The terms and conditions published are standard for all government grant awards, and we are not looking to make any changes to these. Changes can be made in exceptional circumstances, if required. We would expect you to notify us of any issues with the terms and conditions as early as possible.

Will applications be made public? Do we need to sign NDAs?

Applications will not be made public but could be subject to Freedom of Information requests (FOIs). If an FOI request is received the Department will need to consider what information is disclosed or what needs to be withheld under an exemption. Any FOI request received is considered on a case-by-case basis and any third party subject to the disclosure of information will be consulted.

Only the necessary people within DESNZ will see any commercially sensitive information to assess bids and conduct due diligence. If you think your company will require an NDA to be put in place, please let us know.

What are the expected delivery dates and is there any room for these dates to change?

The deliverables attached to the grant offer will need to be completed by the 31 March 2030 as this aligns with the end of the funding period. However, the plant is only required to be operational by 2031 to align with the enrichment capability. There is no specific expectation about operations that will be completed during this period – this would be a decision for the recipient.

It will be crucial for any potential grant recipient to work closely with all HALEU delivery partners to ensure delivery timelines remain aligned.

Will DESNZ consider any offtake agreements?

DESNZ will not be considering any offtake agreements.

Do all bids need to be submitted through a UK-based company?

No, bids do not need to be submitted through a UK-based company however grant awards can only be made to a UK registered company and you will need to provide a UK company registration number as part of the application process.

In the event that the bid is compiled by a company registered outside of the UK the application should make it clear this has been done on behalf of the UK registered company.

What evidence will be required on siting and licensing?

Applicants must provide evidence of access to a UK site which has a license that covers the deconversion of HALEU and associated processes or provide a detailed plan for securing a UK site and/or obtaining the relevant planning permissions and site license, with specific timelines and qualified resource requirements identified for each step.

Evidence could include a signed lease agreement for a licensed nuclear site, a memorandum of understanding or letter of intent to acquire a site, alongside clear timescales and plans for site acquisition and licensing.

Following submission of a bid, is the company committed to delivering what has been outlined in their application?

No, a commitment is only made on the signing of the Final Grant Offer Letter after an offer has been made.

Will negotiations take place following bid submission?

No, however HMG reserves the right to request additional information if this is deemed necessary to effectively judge applications.

Can the technology used originate from outside of the UK?

If the Grant Recipient owns the Intellectual Property, we are happy for the technology to have originated in a country outside of the UK. The IP will remain the property of the Grant Recipient.

Can you confirm the approach which DESNZ will take towards the funding of risk/ contingency for the project?

The total amount of grant funding available for this scheme is £70m.

The exact value of the grant awarded will depend on the application presented by the successful recipient and the completion of financial due diligence, to consider the minimum level of funding required, which will be conducted by the Departments Central Grants & Loans team.

The due diligence process ensures that costs are accounted for and reasonable. Applicants are advised to make sure that any estimates are explained and includes assumptions made which consider risk and inflationary pressures.

This will then be considered as part of the due diligence process to determine if these costs are reasonable and allowable. This is a standard process for all government grants.

We are not sure what FRS 1024 is, please can you confirm if you mean FRS 102?

We can confirm that the application guidance should say FRS 102. We have amended the guidance to reflect the change. Costs must be as detailed by UK FRS 102 and/or international accounting and financial reporting standards.

What will be the role of NNL?

The National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) is being considered for a grant from the HALEU Programme which will fund skills and capability development and a subsequent programme of research and development work. They will not be charging for this support.

Collaboration with NNL will look different depending on the applicant, so we encourage you to speak directly to NNL regarding your plans.

It is our expectation that if successful NNL will collaborate and align their R&D to the needs of the deconverter to enable the successful development of the commercial deconversion facility. However, if there is support requested that goes beyond the scope of NNL’s R&D work that you identify and would like to pursue, we anticipate NNL would charge for this.

For any further information, please speak to NNL directly, who have been advised to work with all prospective bidders.

What does the throughput of the facility need to be?

The facility should be capable of processing at least 10,000 kgU per year of HALEU by 31 March 2030. The actual amount processed by the plant will become clearer when we are more certain of market demand. We anticipate that Urenco’s HALEU enrichment plant will have an initial production capacity of approximately 10,000kgU, rising to up to 30,000kgU with future facility expansions. We would expect the HALEU deconversion facility to have similar scope for expansion of capacity.

What will the other HALEU funding be used for?

We have already made an award of £196m to Urenco for HALEU enrichment capabilities as well as to the Office of Nuclear Regulation (ONR) and the Environment Agency (EA) to develop the appropriate regulatory and oversight package for the programme.

The remaining HALEU funding will be used for transport and skills and capability development.

We are not able to provide details of the exact distribution of the funding.

Will there be any role for the Dalton Institute?

The Dalton Institute will not be receiving any direct funding under the HALEU programme but we expect there to be a role for universities in undertaking research and development and providing graduates and PhD students into industry.