The Latest: Feds seek improved performance at Los Alamos lab
The Latest on the contract competition for Los Alamos National Laboratory (all times local):
12:30 p.m.
The National Nuclear Security Administration says an open competition to find the next manager of Los Alamos National Laboratory will provide the best opportunity for improving performance at the northern New Mexico facility.
The agency on Tuesday said that the bidding process will improve terms and conditions of the next multibillion-dollar management contract.
It was first announced in late 2015 that the current manager, Los Alamos National Security LLC, would be losing its $2.2 billion contract since it failed to earn high enough performance reviews.
Now, criticism of the lab's safety record has intensified as it prepares to resume production of plutonium pits for the nation's nuclear weapons cache.
The NNSA says it's beginning the bidding process now to allow for competition and for an orderly transition when the current contract expires in September 2018.
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9:35 a.m.
The competition for a multibillion-dollar contract to manage the troubled Los Alamos National Laboratory is beginning after a week in which the northern New Mexico facility was hit with criticism for its record of safety lapses.
The National Nuclear Security Administration on Tuesday posted online its intent to conduct a competition for the management and operation contract. The agency is expected to release more details about the request for proposals in the coming weeks.
The current $2.2 billion contract for Los Alamos National Security LLC to manage the lab ends in 2018. Some critics have said the bidding process will offer an opportunity to make changes at Los Alamos.
Just last week, federal officials announced an investigation into the improper shipment of nuclear material from the lab. This follows other reports about the mishandling of plutonium and radioactive waste.