Officials from the Fukushima region visited West Cumbria to meet with nuclear industry bosses and see how the area is benefitting from decommissioning work at Sellafield.
The five-day visit was hosted by Jacobs, and saw a group from Fukushima Prefecture regional government and think tank Mitsubishi Research Institute tour the area.
Andy White, Jacobs vice president for decommissioning and regeneration, said: “We hope our guests will be able to use some of what they have seen to benefit the economic regeneration of the Fukushima region.”
In 2011, the Fukushima nuclear plant was the scene of the second worst nuclear power accident in the industry’s history. A tsunami and earthquake damaged its back-up generators at the plant, causing cooling systems to fail. Explosions followed and the reactor cores melted. Work is ongoing to contain the site.
The visit from the Fukushima representatives was supported by Industrial Solutions Hub, a collaborative initiative bringing together industry, SMEs, academic and research institutions into a business eco-system to build capability, strengthen the resilience of the Cumbrian economy, and regenerate communities.
John Maddison, iSH managing director, said: “There are many synergies between the different regions about how to successfully regenerate communities through collaboration, including with local businesses and educational institutions, and I am looking forward to developing that shared learning.”
The group also toured the Sellafield site, visited Jacobs’ Engineering and Innovation Centre on the Beckermet Industrial Estate, and met Solway Community Power Company and the Britain’s Energy Coast Business Cluster.
At the Bus Station project in Whitehaven, they toured new office space funded by Sellafield Ltd that is providing space for start-ups and entrepreneurs. At Energy Coast University Technical College and Lakes College at Lillyhall, near Workington, they saw how education is helping to create Cumbria’s workforce of the future.
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