United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) was established in 1954 as a statutory corporation to oversee and pioneer the development of nuclear energy within the United Kingdom.
The Authority made pioneering developments in nuclear power, overseeing the peaceful development of nuclear technology and performing much scientific research.
In the late 1980s, UKAEA was put into 'trading fund' mode, where it was required to act and account as though it were a commercial enterprise. In the 1990s the Authority was split, with the more commercial parts transferred into a public company AEA Technology, which was then floated on the London Stock Exchange, while the parts directly related to nuclear liabilities that would need decommissioning were retained.
Its modern role is to decommission nuclear facilities used for the UK's research and development program and restore the environment of the sites. Since the early 1990s UKAEA has completed more decommissioning work than anyone in Europe, and has had considerable success in regenerating former nuclear sites for commercial use.
UKAEA also operates UK and European fusion power research programs at Culham in Oxfordshire, including the world's most powerful fusion device, the Joint European Torus. The research aims to develop fusion as a commercially viable, environmentally sound energy source for the future.
UKAEA site locations:
The UKAEA is funded mainly by the Department of Trade and Industry.
[edit] Board
Lady Barbara Thomas Judge (chair)
[edit] See also
- Atomic Energy Research Establishment
- Nuclear Decommissioning Authority
- BNFL
- Nuclear power in the United Kingdom
- UK Atomic Energy Authority Constabulary
