TN®GEMINI UK fleet: Modernisation, maintenance and life cycle technical services

LLW Repository Ltd, a key UK nuclear waste management company, are the custodian of 3 existing TN® Gemini NDA assets, that were manufactured and delivered by Orano TN in the early 2000 and were not operated for the past 10 years. LLW Repository provide strategic Type B transport packaging capability through this TN® Gemini fleet to transfer legacy alpha contaminated drums from different UK Nuclear Installations to an interim storage facility. / As a high-integrity waste transport solution, the TN® Gemini container is a market-leading package, with high volumetric transport capacity, high flexibility in the variety of loaded waste and with a French and UK acclaimed safety pedigree. / LLW Repository has contracts in place with Orano TN, as TN®GEMINI Design Authority and manufacturer, to reinstate its existing UK fleet in full compliance and conformity with Safety Analysis Report (SAR) requirements. The scope of these contracts includes the modernization, the maintenance and life cycle technical services for TN® GEMINI UK fleet. These six years duration contracts marks an important milestone in establishing a long-term partnership to achieve LLW Repository’s mission for the safe and cost-effective transport of legacy waste. Orano TN is also supplying new internal arrangements, recently approved by the Nuclear Safety Authority, enhancing the TN® Gemini container capacity to transport alpha contaminated waste. / The return to service activity of the TN® Gemini fleet takes into account Orano TN’s know-how acquired through the licensing, manufacturing, maintaining and operating this type B container for more than 20 years. To achieve full conformity and compliance of the fleet, specific and complex manufacturing operations are deployed, sometimes making use of technology transfer from other business sectors or requiring a high level of skill in the packaging manufacture. The guiding principle of all work performed to reinstate the fleet capability consists in maintaining the SAR compliance thanks to an Orano TN multidisciplinary task force team. / The paper will describe some key challenges addressed by Orano TN to perform the modernisation, maintenance and life cycle technical services on TN® Gemini UK fleet on this exciting journey.