Awe

Defence written question – answered at on 2 July 2014.

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Photo of Caroline Lucas Caroline Lucas Green, Brighton, Pavilion

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 22 November 2011, Official Report, column 272W, on AWE, what his most recent estimate is of the (a) anticipated out-turn cost and (b) projected in-service date of each of the new build projects in the Atomic Weapons Establishment Site Development Context Plan.

Photo of Philip Dunne Philip Dunne The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence

The following tables show the current new build projects, with approved costs and in-service dates, at the Atomic Weapons Establishment.

Projected in-service dates are shown in bandings to avoid prejudice to national security and defence. No costs are attributed to projects detailed in table 2 as these have yet to be approved.

Table 1: Current new build projects that have been through the Ministry of Defence approval process
Ongoing projects Function Projected in-service period Approved cost (£million)
Conventional Manufacturing—Phoenix Manufacturing/production 2014-15 57
Hydrodynamics trials—Technology Development Centre Testing/research 2014-15 40
High Explosives fabrication—Circinus Manufacturing/Production 2014-15 231
Warhead assembly/disassembly—Mensa Manufacturing/production 2016-20 734
Uranium components—Pegasus Manufacturing/production 2016-20 634
Table 2: Projects currently planned for but which have yet to go through the formal Ministry of Defence approvals process
Ongoing projects Function Projected in-service period
Salts Processing—Octans Testing/research 2020-25
Initiator system manufacture—Taurus Manufacturing/production 2020-25
Large Scale formulations—Scorpius Manufacturing/production 2025-30
Small Scale formulations—Cepheus Manufacturing/production 2025-30
New Plutonium (Pu) Facility—not yet named Manufacturing/production 2025-30
New depleted Uranium Facility Manufacturing/production 2025-30
Assembly for Trials—Columba Testing/research 2025-30
High Explosive Climatic Trials Testing/research 2025-30
Non-Metallics and materials R&D—Libra Testing/research 2025-30
Chemical processing—Astra Manufacturing/production 2025-30

Does this answer the above question?

Yes2 people think so

No1 person thinks not

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