A new specialist nuclear transport organisation was officially launched in the UK on 19 April. Nuclear Transport Solutions (NTS) is part of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) group and specialises in the operational, commercial, engineering, legal, and regulatory expertise that underpin nuclear transport and logistics operations.
The creation of NTS follows the NDA’s decision in 2020 to create a single nuclear transport division to support its important mission to clean up the UK’s earliest nuclear sites. NTS is a centre of excellence for nuclear transport, packaging and logistics expertise. As well as supporting the NDA’s clean-up mission it uses its world-leading expertise to provide commercial activities in the UK and overseas.
It operates Direct Rail Services (DRS) and Pacific Nuclear Transport Ltd (PNTL), which will continue to deliver rail and shipping services for customers, building on decades of experience of providing safe, secure and reliable transport solutions in the UK and internationally.
NTS also provides consultancy services offering bespoke solutions to customers’ complex nuclear transport challenges, and transport services for customers outside of the nuclear sector.
NTS CEO Seth Kybird said: “We have created NTS to become the leading global provider of safe, secure and reliable nuclear transport solutions – building on the experience and capabilities of DRS, INS and PNTL to deliver great value for our UK and international customers. “We’re proud of how we use our expertise to make the world safer and more sustainable. Whether that’s by supporting the clean-up of the UK’s nuclear legacy, using our high security shipping capabilities to support global security goals, or providing low-carbon rail freight solutions that takes more lorries off our roads.”
NTS says it has decades of experience of transporting nuclear materials with a 100% nuclear safety record thoughout. It operates three specialist nuclear vessels; a fleet of over 100 locomotives; and a team of more than 700. NTS operates from locations across the UK, and in France and Japan.
In the UK it operate with rail facilities and sites at over 20 locations and a dedicated marine terminal at Ramsden Dock, Barrow in Furness, Cumbria with direct rail links to the Sellafield site. In Japan, NTS has been providing services to its customers since the beginning of the Japanese nuclear power programme. International Nuclear Services Japan KK (INS Japan), based in Tokyo, liaises directly with customers in Japan on behalf of the UK team. The French office provides a gateway to customers in France and continental Europe. It provides technical support for the proper use and care of transport assets, such as vehicles, flasks, lifting beams and transport frames within continental Europe.