Nukem Technologies
{{Short description|German nuclear engineering company}}
{{Distinguish|Nukem Energy}}
{{Infobox company
| name = NUKEM Technologies GmbH（branded as NUKEM）
| logo =
| caption =
| type = Subsidiary
| traded_as =
| fate =
| predecessor =
| successor =
| foundation ={{Start date and age|1960|04|01|df=y}} as NUKEM GmbH (Nuklearchemie und –metallurgie GmbH)
| founder = Degussa
Rio Tinto
Mallinckrodt
| defunct =
| location_city = Karlstein am Main
| location_country = Germany
| locations =
| area_served =
| key_people = Thomas Seipolt
| industry = Nuclear engineering
| products =
| production =
| services = Radioactive waste and spent fuel management
Nuclear engineering and consulting
Nuclear decommissioning
TRISO fuel technology
| revenue =
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| assets =
| equity =
| owner =
| num_employees = 170
| parent = Muroosystems Corporation
| divisions =
| homepage = {{URL|www.nukemtechnologies.de}}
| footnotes =
| intl =
}}
NUKEM Technologies GmbH（branded as NUKEM）is a German nuclear engineering company based in Karlstein am Main, with a history dating back to 1960. The company specializes in nuclear decommissioning, radioactive waste management, spent fuel handling, and the development of TRISO fuel technology.
Its headquarters sit on the site of Germany’s first nuclear power plant—a facility that NUKEM itself decommissioned and restored—highlighting the company’s long-standing role in the country’s nuclear sector.
Following several changes in ownership over the decades, NUKEM faced increasing regulatory challenges after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022 due to its Russian ownership at the time. In April 2024, the company filed for bankruptcy in Germany. In October of the same year Muroosystems Corporation, a Japanese Company, acquired its core assets, enabling NUKEM to resume operations and re-enter the global market under new leadership.{{Cite news |title=Muroosystems completes purchase of Nukem Technologies |url=https://world-nuclear-news.org/articles/muroosystems-completes-purchase-of-nukem-technologies |publisher=World Nuclear News |access-date=2024-10-01}}
History
= Founding and Fuel Cycle Operations (1960–1988) =
NUKEM Technologies traces its origins to 1960, when NUKEM GmbH (originally Nuklearchemie und -metallurgie GmbH) was established through a joint investment by Degussa, Rio Tinto, and Mallinckrodt. The company initially focused on nuclear fuel element production and trade, quickly becoming one of Europe’s leading suppliers in the nuclear fuel market.{{Cite book |title=The Nuclear Industry in Germany |last=Radkau |first=Joachim |year=2013 |publisher=Deutsches Museum |isbn=978-3-940396-61-7 |pages=112–115}}
In 1969, NUKEM sold its light water reactor fuel business to KWU (a joint venture between Siemens and AEG), marking a strategic shift toward uranium trading, nuclear waste management, and engineering services.{{Cite journal |title=The Evolution of Nuclear Fuel Supply in Germany |last=Schneider |first=Mycle |journal=Nuclear Technology |volume=45 |issue=3 |year=1970 |pages=231–238 |doi=10.13182/NT70-A28734}}By the mid-1980s, NUKEM was engaged in front-end and back-end nuclear cycle services and took part in the Wackersdorf reprocessing plant project in Germany, an effort to advance spent fuel recycling. However, due to public opposition and shifting political priorities, the project was canceled in 1989, limiting NUKEM’s expansion in reprocessing technologies.
{{Cite book
|last=Stephany
|first=Manfred
|title=Zur Geschichte der NUKEM 1960–1987
|publisher=Books on Demand GmbH, Norderstedt
|year=2005
|isbn=3-8334-2505-9
|language=de
|url=https://www.amazon.de/dp/3833425059
|archive-url=https://search.worldcat.org/en/title/181455421
|archive-date=2025-03-27
|archive-format=WorldCat
}}
= RWE Ownership and International Expansion (1988–2005) =
In 1988, NUKEM became a wholly owned subsidiary of RWE AG, one of Germany’s largest energy utilities. Under RWE, NUKEM expanded its integrated nuclear services, combining fuel supply, waste management, and engineering capabilities to strengthen its market position across Europe.{{Cite news |title=RWE übernimmt Nukem vollständig |url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/archiv/rwe-uebernimmt-nukem-vollstaendig/1506328.html |publisher=Handelsblatt |date=1988-06-15 |access-date=2025-02-24 |language=de}}
During the 1990s and early 2000s, NUKEM began to grow its international footprint, securing contracts for waste management and engineering services at nuclear sites in Slovakia (Bohunice), Russia (Balakovo), and Ukraine (Khmelnytskyi). In 2003, NUKEM launched the construction of a waste treatment center at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, enhancing its presence in high-activity waste processing and establishing itself as a global player in complex nuclear remediation projects.
= Private Equity Ownership and Business Restructuring (2006–2012) =
In 2006, RWE sold NUKEM to Advent International (via Advent Energy S.à r.l.) for €205 million. Following the acquisition, Advent International restructured NUKEM GmbH, retaining the nuclear fuel trade business under the parent company while spinning off its radioactive waste management, spent fuel management, and nuclear decommissioning engineering operations into an independent nuclear engineering subsidiary, NUKEM Technologies GmbH.{{Cite news |title=Advent International acquires NUKEM from RWE |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/business/advent-international-acquires-nukem-from-rwe-idUSKCN0ZQ1X8 |publisher=Reuters |date=2006-07-10 |access-date=2025-02-24}}
In 2007, NUKEM divested several subsidiaries: NUKEM Ltd. (UK) to Freyssinet SAS (VINCI Group), NUKEM Corp. (USA) to EnergySolutions, and NIS Ingenieure (Germany) and Assistance Nucléaire S.A. (France) to Siempelkamp.{{Cite news |title=EnergySolutions Acquires NUKEM Corporation |url=https://www.energysolutions.com/news/2007-nukem-acquisition |publisher=EnergySolutions |date=2007-09-12 |access-date=2025-02-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230110114532/https://www.energysolutions.com/news/2007-nukem-acquisition |archive-date=2023-01-10}} In 2011, RWE spun off the isotope trading business into NUKEM Isotopes GmbH.{{Cite web |title=NUKEM Isotopes GmbH Established |url=https://www.nukemisotopes.com/about/history |publisher=NUKEM Isotopes GmbH |date=2011-04-01 |access-date=2025-02-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120091547/https://www.nukemisotopes.com/about/history |archive-date=2024-01-20}} In 2012, the nuclear fuel trade division NUKEM Energy GmbH was sold to Cameco for $136 million.{{Cite news |url=http://world-nuclear-news.org/C-Cameco_to_buy_Nukem_Energy-1405125.html |title=Cameco to buy Nukem Energy |date=2012-05-14 |work=World Nuclear News |accessdate=2012-05-15}}
= Russian Ownership (2009–2024) =
On December 14, 2009, NUKEM Technologies GmbH was acquired by Atomstroyexport, a subsidiary of Russia’s Rosatom, for €23.5 million. The company was subsequently integrated into the Rosatom Group as part of Russia’s strategic expansion in nuclear decommissioning and waste management.{{Cite news |url=http://en.rian.ru/papers/20091225/157373580.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100105162813/http://en.rian.ru/papers/20091225/157373580.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 5, 2010 |title=Atomstroyexport buys NPP decommissioning technology |work=Kommersant |publisher=RIA Novosti |accessdate=2009-12-26 |date=2009-12-25}}{{Cite news |url=http://world-nuclear-news.org/IT-Nukem_Technologies_now_owned_by_ASE-1512094.html |title=Nukem Technologies now owned by ASE |date=2009-12-15 |work=World Nuclear News |accessdate=2012-10-07}}
To strengthen its operational capabilities in these areas, NUKEM established a new subsidiary in 2014, NUKEM Technologies Engineering Services GmbH, focused exclusively on nuclear facility decommissioning, radioactive waste treatment, and related engineering services.{{Cite web |title=NUKEM Technologies Establishes Engineering Subsidiary |url=https://www.nukemtechnologies.de/en/news/2014-engineering-services |publisher=NUKEM Technologies GmbH |date=2014-03-20 |access-date=2025-02-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240115083219/https://www.nukemtechnologies.de/en/news/2014-engineering-services |archive-date=2024-01-15}}
Following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022, NUKEM’s operations in European markets came under severe pressure due to its Russian ownership. As regulatory restrictions mounted and projects were suspended, the company experienced a significant downturn in business. In April 2024, NUKEM filed for self-administered insolvency in Germany.{{Cite news |title=NUKEM initiates insolvency proceedings |url=https://www.neimagazine.com/news/nukem-initiates-insolvency-proceedings-11671209/?cf-view&cf-closed |publisher=NEI Magazine |access-date=2024-04-10}}
{{Cite news
|title=How the nuclear waste company Nukem plans to break away from its Russian owner
|url=https://www.wiwo.de/unternehmen/energie/nukem-gruppe-wie-der-kernkraftentsorger-seinen-russischen-eigner-loswerden-will/29740160.html
|publisher=WirtschaftsWoche
|language=de
|date=2023-06-01
|access-date=2025-03-26
}}
= Acquisition by Muroosystems and Restructuring (2024–present) =
On May 29, 2024, Japan’s Muroosystems Corporation signed an agreement with NUKEM’s insolvency administrator to acquire all shares of NUKEM Technologies Engineering Services GmbH, along with core assets from NUKEM Technologies GmbH.{{Cite web |title=Notice Regarding the Acquisition of All Shares of NUKEM Technologies Engineering Services GmbH |url=https://www.muroosystems.com/news/2024-nukem-acquisition |publisher=Muroosystems Corporation |date=2024-05-29 |access-date=2025-02-24}} The German government approved the transaction on September 9, with economic ownership officially transferred on September 25, and the full acquisition finalized in October 2024.{{Cite news |title=Muroosystems completes purchase of Nukem Technologies |url=https://world-nuclear-news.org/articles/muroosystems-completes-purchase-of-nukem-technologies |publisher=World Nuclear News |access-date=2024-10-01}}
Following the sale, NUKEM Technologies GmbH was liquidated in December 2024, and its remaining operations and intellectual property were fully consolidated into the restructured NUKEM Technologies Engineering Services GmbH, now operating under Muroosystems’ ownership.{{Cite news |title=NUKEM Technologies GmbH concludes insolvency proceedings |url=https://www.neimagazine.com/news/nukem-concludes-insolvency-2024 |publisher=NEI Magazine |date=2024-12-15 |access-date=2025-02-24}}The acquisition allowed the NUKEM brand and its core business to continue, with support from its new parent company driving renewed efforts to strengthen and expand its presence in the global nuclear engineering market.
Projects
NUKEM Technologies has delivered a wide range of high-impact international projects across the nuclear lifecycle, including facility decommissioning, radioactive waste management, spent fuel storage, and advanced fuel technologies. Its global project portfolio demonstrates both technical depth and operational versatility:
• Lithuania: Designed and constructed interim spent fuel storage and solid waste treatment facilities for the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant, supporting Lithuania’s broader decommissioning strategy.{{Cite news |url=http://world-nuclear-news.org/WR-Construction_licences_for_Ignalina_waste_facilities-0309094.html |title=Construction go-ahead for Ignalina waste stores |date=2009-09-03 |work=World Nuclear News |accessdate=2012-10-07}}{{Cite news |url=http://www.osw.waw.pl/en/publikacje/ceweekly/2010-05-26/lithuania-has-problems-disassembling-old-ignalina-power-plant |title=Lithuania has problems disassembling the old Ignalina power plant |date=2010-05-26 |work=CE Weekly |publisher=Centre for Eastern Studies |accessdate=2012-10-07 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120401070652/http://www.osw.waw.pl/en/publikacje/ceweekly/2010-05-26/lithuania-has-problems-disassembling-old-ignalina-power-plant |archivedate=2012-04-01}}{{Cite news |url=http://www.osw.waw.pl/en/publikacje/ceweekly/2011-09-14/lithuania-problems-decommissioning-ignalina-nuclear-power-plant |title=Lithuania: Problems with decommissioning of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant |first=Joanna |author=Hyndle-Hussein |date=2011-09-14 |work=CE Weekly |publisher=Centre for Eastern Studies |accessdate=2012-10-07}}
{{Cite web
|title=Nuclear Research and Development Trends 2015, p. 151
|url=https://www.mext.go.jp/component/a_menu/science/detail/__icsFiles/afieldfile/2019/06/25/1364263_07.pdf
|publisher=Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (Japan)
|language=ja
|date=2015
|access-date=2025-03-27
}}
• South Africa: Awarded a contract in 2007 to design and supply a pilot fuel plant for the country’s Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) program. Although the project was later cancelled, it highlighted NUKEM’s capabilities in advanced fuel systems.{{Cite news |url=http://world-nuclear-news.org/newsarticle.aspx?id=13860 |title=Nukem awarded contract at PBMR fuel plant |date=2007-08-13 |work=World Nuclear News |accessdate=2012-10-07}}
• Indonesia: In 2015, NUKEM collaborated with local companies to carry out early-stage design and feasibility work for a 10 MW high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) experimental facility commissioned by Indonesia’s National Nuclear Energy Agency (Batan).
{{Cite web
|title=NUKEM to support Indonesia’s HTGR experimental reactor project
|url=https://www.nuklearforum.ch/de/news/indonesien-auftrag-fuer-versuchsreaktor-vergeben/
|publisher=Nuklearforum Schweiz
|language=de
|date=2015-06-02
|access-date=2025-03-27
}}
{{Cite web
|title=Progress with Indonesian SMR project involving NUKEM
|url=https://scienceon.kisti.re.kr/srch/selectPORSrchTrend.do?cn=GTB2018003934
|publisher=Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KISTI)
|language=ko
|date=2018-03-23
|access-date=2025-03-27
}}
{{Cite web
|title=Nuclear Research and Development Trends 2015, p. 38
|url=https://www.mext.go.jp/component/a_menu/science/detail/__icsFiles/afieldfile/2019/06/25/1364263_07.pdf
|publisher=Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (Japan)
|language=ja
|date=2015
|access-date=2025-03-27
}}
• Bulgaria: Built a dry spent fuel storage facility for the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant, enhancing Bulgaria’s long-term spent fuel management infrastructure.{{Cite news |url=https://www.neimagazine.com/news/construction-of-bulgarian-waste-repository-begins-5911856/ |title=Construction of Bulgarian waste repository begins |date=2017-08-29 |work=Nuclear Engineering International |accessdate=2017-08-29}}
• Russia: Provided waste treatment and conditioning facilities at the Leningrad and Kursk nuclear power plants, contributing to Russia’s national radioactive waste handling capacity.{{Cite book |title=Solid radioactive waste processing facility of the NPP Leningrad |author=Weichard, S.|publisher=Annual meeting on nuclear technology 2008. Proceedings |year=2008 |pages=401-406}}
• Ukraine: Developed and delivered a comprehensive solid waste management complex at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, supporting one of the most technically challenging nuclear cleanup efforts in the world.{{Cite book |title=Industrial complex for solid radwaste management (ICSRM) at Chernobyl nuclear power plant functionality of the facilities. Factors of success. |author=Eichhorn, H.|publisher=Atw. Internationale Zeitschrift fuer Kernenergie |year=2011 |issn=1431-5254 |pages=105-107}}
• France: Led the dismantling of the reactor block at the Brennilis Nuclear Power Plant, as part of France’s nuclear decommissioning program.{{Cite news |url=https://www.neimagazine.com/advanced-reactorsfusion/breaking-up-brennilis/ |title=Breaking up Brennilis |date=2012-08-01 |work=Nuclear Engineering International |accessdate=2012-08-01}}
• China: Supplied process equipment and services for a spent ion exchange resin treatment facility at the Zhangzhou Nuclear Power Plant, including design, engineering, fabrication, testing, and QA, reinforcing China’s waste treatment infrastructure.{{Cite news |url=https://www.neimagazine.com/news/nukem-supplies-equipment-to-chinas-zhangzhou-npp-10964707/ |title=NUKEM supplies equipment to China’s Zhangzhou NPP |date=2023-06-26 |work=Nuclear Engineering International |accessdate=2023-06-26}}
• Switzerland: Conducted pre-dismantling feasibility studies at the Mühleberg Nuclear Power Plant, evaluating the application of the FREMES system for characterizing radioactive concrete debris.{{Cite news |url=https://www.neimagazine.com/news/nukem-to-study-crushed-concrete-characterisation-at-muhleberg/ |title=Nukem to study crushed concrete characterisation at Mühleberg |date=2025-02-03 |work=Nuclear Engineering International |accessdate=2025-02-03}}
• Sweden: In partnership with Uniper Nuclear Services GmbH, successfully completed the dismantling of the last reactor pressure vessel at the Oskarshamn Nuclear Power Plant, contributing to Sweden’s national decommissioning progress.{{Cite news |url=https://www.neimagazine.com/news/dismantling-progress-at-oskarshamn/ |title=Dismantling progress at Oskarshamn |date=2025-02-13 |work=Nuclear Engineering International |accessdate=2025-02-13}}
These projects underscore NUKEM’s long-standing expertise in nuclear decommissioning, radioactive waste management, spent fuel handling, and fuel cycle technology, affirming its role as a trusted partner in the global nuclear engineering sector.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Portal|Germany|Nuclear technology}}
- {{official website|https://www.nukemtechnologies.de/en}}
Category:German companies established in 1960
Category:Nuclear technology companies of Germany