Initial targets for joint work include countries in Europe and the Pacific that represent a combined addressable market for geologic disposal of spent fuel and high-level waste worth more than $30bn (€29bn), California, US-based Deep Isolation said.
The company said “there is a new sense of urgency” to dispose of nuclear waste. Low-carbon nuclear energy is a powerful alternative to fossil fuels in the fight against climate change, but much of the world is requiring a waste solution to be in place before investments are made in new nuclear power installations.
Deep Isolation’s deep borehole technology uses directional drilling practices to isolate waste deep underground in borehole repositories, providing many countries with an alternative to a traditional mined repository.
The company says borehole repositories can provide substantial isolation for many types of high-level waste in a wide range of locations. Because it can be implemented modularly, it is well suited for smaller inventories of waste or as a complement to an existing repository.
The agreement provides Amentum access to more than 50 protected Deep Isolation inventions, and engineering specifications and know-how. This includes Deep Isolation’s detailed and compliant process based on International Atomic Energy Agency guidance for tailoring a deep borehole repository to the specific regulatory requirements, waste inventory, stakeholder needs and local geology of each client.
Amentum is a US government and commercial services contractor specialising in national security, defence, healthcare and engineering.
Deep Isolation has signed agreements related to its deep borehole waste solutions in more than a dozen countries. In 2020 it agreed to work with Estonian nuclear development startup Fermi Energia on a preliminary study for a deep borehole solution for storing nuclear waste.
