Written question asked by Lord Astor of Hever (Conservative), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Baroness Vadera (Labour) on Tuesday, 3 March 2009.

BNFL: Sale of Assets

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government who decided not to disclose the terms on which British Nuclear Fuels Ltd agreed on 17 December 2008 to sell its one-third share in the management company of the Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston, to Jacobs Engineering Group of Pasadena, California.

Answer: The decision on the form of the announcement was taken by the Board of BNFL, having consulted with the shareholder executive and the MoD. As is common, with transactions of this nature, it was a term of the Jacobs proposal that the price and other commercially sensitive terms remained confidential. The Jacobs proposal was materially superior to the other proposal received. The board of BNFL was advised in relation to the disposal by NM Rothschild and Freshfields.

Secondary information