Final fuel leaves iconic UK nuclear plant

Calder Hall, the world’s first full-scale nuclear power station, is empty of fuel for the first time since the 1950s after defueling operations were completed during August. The achievement marks an important milestone in the decommissioning of the Sellafield complex.

The opening of Calder Hall in 1956 marked the dawn of the atomic age and made Britain a world leader in the civil nuclear industry – its Magnox design was the template for Britain’s first generation of nuclear power stations.The station generated electricity for 47 years, ending in 2003. Defueling began in 2011.

Removing fuel from Calder Hall’s 4 reactors was a complex task, says the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, with 38,953 spent fuel rods carefully retrieved from the station’s four reactors. The same machines used to load fuel into the reactors during its operational life were used to pull it out. Once removed, the fuel was transferred in shielded flasks to Sellafield’s Fuel Handling Plant.

Calder Hall’s reactor buildings will now be placed into a state known as ‘care and maintenance’. In due course they will be fully decommissioned and demolished.