Hunterston B moves into decommissioning as the UK’s first AGR site prepares to transfer to government control.

In two weeks’ time the North Ayrshire plant will pass from EDF to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, marking the start of a decade-long process to wind down Britain’s ageing advanced gas-cooled reactor fleet.

The milestone has now been cleared after the regulator granted a new site licence to Nuclear Restoration Services, the NDA subsidiary that will take over operations from 1 April.

The licence is critical, as it formally shifts responsibility for the site and sets the conditions for dismantling work to begin, on the site which started generating power in 1976.

Hunterston B, which stopped generating in 2022 and was fully defuelled in 2025, is the first of seven AGR stations to enter this phase.

More will follow on a rolling basis over the next decade as Britain transitions away from its legacy nuclear fleet.

EDF’s decommissioning director Paul Morton said: “This first-of-a-kind project is a massive undertaking… not just the transfer of a huge number of documents and permits but also of 246 brilliant people and the knowledge and skills they hold.”

Those 246 staff will transfer with the site, maintaining continuity as the focus shifts from generation to dismantling.

NDA chief executive David Peattie called it “a landmark moment… a clear vote of confidence in our skills, capability and expertise.”

The process involves transferring thousands of records, more than 20 contracts and multiple licences from EDF to NRS.

For the workforce, it marks a shift rather than an end.

Safety engineer David Mitchell, who has spent 25 years at the site, said the move offers “a new direction… learning new processes, working with new people.”

Decommissioning will be funded through the £20.7 billion Nuclear Liabilities Fund, set up to manage the cost of closing the UK’s nuclear fleet.

The wider programme will see NRS take responsibility for more sites across the UK, supporting thousands of jobs while reducing long-term nuclear risk.