Friday, January 26, 2018

By Trevor Hawes thawes(at)mrt.com
Midland Reporter-Telegram

FILE – In this Oct. 14, 2009, photo provided by Waste Control Specialists, canisters filled with uranium byproduct waste are placed into a burial pit at at Waste Control Specialists near Andrews, Texas. People living nearest to the site would be barred from challenging license amendments sought by the company operating the facility under a Senate bill that could be voted on as early as Wednesday, April 17, 2013. The bill also encourages compact members Texas and Vermont to send their low-level waste elsewhere and seeks to prohibit public hearings or comment on some amendments to the company’s license. (AP Photo/Waste Control Specialists, File)

Waste Control Specialists, which operates a low-level radioactive waste storage facility in Andrews, has been sold, according to a company press release.

WCS was sold by Valhi Inc. to J.F. Lehman & Co., a middle-market private equity firm focused on the government, defense, aerospace and maritime sectors.

WCS lost an antitrust lawsuit in June after the U.S. District Court of Delaware ruled in favor of the Justice Department against a merger with EnergySolutions, a Utah-based company that specializes in decommissioning nuclear power plants.

WCS had pursued making its Andrews facility a place for the temporary storage of high-level nuclear waste while the federal government determines a site for permanent storage. WCS was going through a review by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission over the feasibility of the temporary storage plan.

Alex Harman, a partner at JFLCO said, "WCS is a unique asset that, together with our recent acquisition of NorthStar Group Services, will allow us to provide a complete and cost-effective decommissioning solution for U.S. nuclear utilities."

A sale price was not disclosed. A press release from Valhi indicated J.F. Lehman assumed all of WCS’ third-party indebtedness and other liabilities.