About us
UKAEA researches fusion energy and related technologies, with the aim of positioning the UK as a leader in sustainable nuclear energy.
Mission & goals
UKAEA’s mission is to lead the delivery of sustainable fusion energy and maximise the scientific and economic benefit.
The five interconnected strategic goals to deliver on this mission are:
-
Solve challenges of sustainable fusion energy - from design through to decommissioning - with world-leading science and engineering.
-
Enable partners to design, deliver, and operate commercial fusion power plants.
-
Drive UK economic growth and a thriving industry that exports fusion technology around the world.
-
Create clusters that accelerate innovation in fusion and related technologies.
-
Develop the talented, diverse people needed to deliver fusion energy.
Fusion, the process that powers the Sun, can play a big part in our low-carbon energy future. UKAEA manages the UK fusion programme. Our scientists and engineers are working with partners around the globe to develop fusion as a new source of sustainable energy for tomorrow’s power stations. UKAEA’s research can be accessed at the UKAEA Scientific Publications site.
Our activities
UKAEA has hosted the JET (Joint European Torus) facility at Culham since its design started in 1973. First operation was in 1983 and since then it has set world records for fusion performance. JET is normally run and
funded as a joint facility with EUROfusion. As the UK is not currently associated to Euratom (and by extension EUROfusion) EUROfusion is not currently funding JET. As a result, UKAEA has continued to fund full JET running costs to maintain the world class science done at this facility. The MAST Upgrade facility, also based at Culham, is leading the world in research into compact fusion devices.
New facilities linked to our fusion research are now operational at Culham and at a fusion technology centre near Rotherham, South Yorkshire.
-
Materials Research Facility (MRF), is a new UK facility for micro-characterisation of materials now open to university and industry users. It is part of the National Nuclear User Facility initiative.
-
Remote Applications in Challenging Environments facility (RACE) is conducting R&D and commercial activities in the field of Robotics and Autonomous Systems.
-
Fusion Technology Facilities at Culham and Rotherham are sparking the solutions to key challenges in developing fusion power plants.
-
The Hydrogen-3 Advanced Technology (H3AT) centre is researching fuel technology for fusion power; in particular, tritium - one of the two main fuels needed for commercial fusion.
-
Oxfordshire Advanced Skills (OAS) is a training centre enabling Oxfordshire business to offer young people hi-tech and engineering apprenticeships of the highest quality.
Building on this broad and extensive fusion research and technology programme, UKAEA is now embarking on the design of a UK fusion power station - the Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production, known as STEP. An initial concept design phase for STEP has started, with the ultimate aim of producing net electricity from fusion around 2040.
In addition, we are responsible for several pension schemes, and own land at the Harwell Campus and Culham Science Centre sites in Oxfordshire, and are committed to further develop these thriving science, technology and business parks.
History of the UK Atomic Energy Authority
Early Years
The UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) was formed in 1954 when the British Government set up a new body to oversee the nation’s nuclear research programme. The role was to provide Britain’s atomic weapons deterrent and develop reactor technologies for the nuclear power stations of the future.
Early achievements included the opening of the world’s first full-scale nuclear power station at Calder Hall - which led to the construction of ten further Magnox stations - and the Dounreay Fast Reactor, which went critical in 1959.
UKAEA was also exploring the potential of fusion energy, and opened a purpose-built fusion laboratory at Culham in 1960.
Diversification
From 1965, UKAEA branched out into commercial and non-nuclear activities to take advantage of spin-off potential from nuclear technology. The atomic research programme also continued, with UKAEA leading plans for new reactor types including advanced gas-cooled reactors and fast reactors.
A reorganisation of the UK’s civil nuclear industry in the early 1970s saw changes to UKAEA’s structure and role. The transfer of responsibilities in weapons research, fuel production, isotope production and radiological protection to other organisations allowed us to focus on our research mission.
Commercial activities continued to grow across the sites, with Harwell alone generating £50 million per year from over 1,200 contracts by 1985. They covered a diverse range of areas, from space tribology to petroleum services and reactor safety testing. AEA Technology was formed in 1989 to act as the UKAEA’s commercial arm, and was eventually privatised in 1996.
Decommissioning
The civil nuclear programme ended with the closure of the Prototype Fast Reactor at Dounreay in 1994. UKAEA had already turned its attention to a new task - that of restoring the environment of its sites as reactors finished operating. Since then we have made extensive progress, and in 2005 we safely dismantled our fifteenth reactor - ZEBRA - at Winfrith.
In April 2005 the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) was formed to take responsibility for the UK’s civil nuclear clean-up programme. UKAEA became a contractor to the NDA for management of decommissioning at Dounreay, Harwell, Windscale, Winfrith and the JET facilities at Culham. Also in 2005, the Government approved the Authority’s plans to expand and compete for wider business.
In April 2008, UKAEA Limited was formed as a commercial arm, subsidiary company Dounreay Site Restoration Limited (DSRL) was licensed by the NII, and the Windscale site was merged into the newly licensed Sellafield Limited. This was followed in February 2009 by the licensing of subsidiary company Research Sites Restoration Limited (RSRL), covering the Harwell and Winfrith sites.
Following a sale process announced by Government in March 2009, UKAEA Limited, together with its subsidiary companies DSRL and RSRL, were sold to Babcock International Group PLC on 31st October 2009. The remaining UKAEA organisation then focused on fusion energy research at Culham.
Corporate information
Access our information
Jobs and contracts
Read about the types of information we routinely publish in our Publication scheme. Our Personal information charter explains how we treat your personal information.