Savannah River Site pit production mission could last for 30 years or longer

Feb. 4—Once it is up and running in the mid-2030s, the mission to produce plutonium pits at the Savannah River Site could last 30, 40 or even 50 years, according to the principal deputy administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration.

NNSA Principal Deputy Administrator Frank Rose, NNSA Savannah River Field Office Manager Jason Armstrong and NNSA Savannah River Field Office Deputy Manager Jeff Allison recently spoke with the Aiken Standard about plans to produce around 50 plutonium pits per year at SRS beginning in the mid-2030s.

Rose said the pit production mission was a long-term mission for the Department of Energy because reestablishing pit production in the United States — the United States has been without a permanent pit production facility since the end of the Cold War — is a top priority of the Department of Energy. He said that's because, for the first time, the country faces a threat from two powers, Russia and China, armed with a large amount of nuclear weapons.

"As you probably saw yesterday, the State Department declared Russia non-compliant with their obligations under NEWSTART," Rose said. "And then there's China ... We estimate by 2035 they will have 1,500 warheads. I don't know what's changed there, but something definitely has."

The Foundation of American Scientists estimated in early 2022 Russia has 5,977 nuclear warheads — the United States is estimated to have 5,428 — and China has around 350. The Pentagon reported Nov. 29, 2022 China plans to increase its number of warheads from 350 to as many as 1,500 by 2035.

Also, Russia and China appear to be more aggressive in their foreign policy dealings.

In 2008, Russia became involved in a dispute between two separatist regions of Georgia and that country.

In 2014, Russia retook the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine following the ouster of a pro-Russia government and its replacement by a pro-western one.

In 2022, Russia began a special mission in Ukraine to "denazify" the country. It has annexed four Ukrainian oblasts but does not control the whole of the land it claims to control.

China has become more belligerent toward Taiwan, in the South China Sea and in its dealings with Hong Kong.

Rose said Russia, China and other countries like North Korea and Iran pose a threat to the global security that arose after the Cold War ended in the late 1980s and early 1990s and that the United States needs to maintain its nuclear deterrent to protect its interest and the interests of its allies. Thus, he said, establishing the ability to maintain the nuclear arsenal is of the utmost importance.

Pit production at SRS, Rose said, prevents the United States from relying on a single-point for pits.

The NNSA also plans to produce 30 pits per year at Los Alamos National Laboratory.

The need to start pit production at SRS establishes a tremendous need for workers.

After the meeting, a spokesman said the site workers who fear the transition from Office of Environmental Management landlord-ship to NNSA landlord-ship will cost them their jobs have nothing to worry about. He added all the workers at the site will be needed, plus many more, for years to come.

The transition is expected to be completed within a couple of years.