King to visit nuclear transport ship in far north of Scotland

The King will visit a nuclear transport ship in the far north of Scotland and unveil a plaque to mark the 70th anniversary of a decommissioned nuclear site where engineers experimented with plutonium and uranium to generate electricity in the 1950s.

Charles will attend an event hosted by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in Scrabster, Caithness, on Monday.

He will attend a reception at Scrabster Harbour to mark the 70th anniversary of the Dounreay nuclear site, the 50th anniversary of the Pacific Nuclear Transport Limited (PNTL), and the 20th anniversary of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

On arrival at the harbour’s Jubilee Pier, the King will meet the crew of the Pacific Heron, a second-generation purpose-built nuclear transport ship that is one of the most sophisticated in the world, and unveil a plaque.

The King will also meet sea cadets and Royal National Lifeboat Institution volunteers from the region.

He will then visit Fish Market Hall and spend time meeting staff from the nuclear industry and community members from Thurso.

The King will visit Caithness Joe Giddens/PA). PA Media

The King will then unveil another plaque to commemorate the visit.

From 1955 until 1994, Dounreay was the UK’s centre of nuclear research and development and scientists experimented with plutonium and uranium to generate electricity using a more advanced type of nuclear reactor.

In April 2005, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), a non-departmental public body of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, took over ownership of the facility from the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA).

It is now described as “Scotland’s largest nuclear clean-up and demolition project” and a site of “construction, demolition and waste management”.

The reception will also commemorate the 50th anniversary of Pacific Nuclear Transport Limited (PNTL), which has been operating for 50 years between Europe and Japan.

The purpose-built ships are three of the most advanced cargo vessels in operation, and PNTL was described as operating “a flawless nuclear safety record” and is committed to innovation regarding the sustainability of its shipping operations.