NAVSEA awards contract to dismantle, recycle, dispose of original carrier Enterprise

The US Navy awarded a contract to dismantle, recycle, and dispose of carrier Enterprise , shown here on deployment in 2007. (US Navy)

US Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) awarded NorthStar Maritime Dismantlement Services of Vernon, Vermont, a USD536.7 million firm-fixed-price contract for the dismantling, recycling, and disposal of former aircraft carrier Enterprise (CVN 65), the Pentagon confirmed on 30 May.

This will be the first of US Navy (USN) nuclear-powered carriers to be dismantled, recycled, and disposed of. While Enterprise is a one-of-its-type carrier, the succeeding Nimitz-class carriers will go through the same process as they end their life cycles and the next-generation Ford-class carriers enter the fleet.

The 30 May contract calls for NorthStar Maritime Dismantlement Services to dismantle Enterprise in its entirety and properly recycle or dispose of “all resulting materials”.

Specifically, hazardous materials, including low-level radioactive waste, will be packaged and safely transported for disposal at authorised licensed sites, according to the contract. Work will be performed in Mobile, Alabama, and is expected to be completed by November 2029.

USN officials say lessons learned on Enterprise will be used to inform potential disposal options for the 10 Nimitz-class ships in the aircraft carrier fleet as they retire. The last Nimitz-class ship, USS George H W Bush (CVN 77), is scheduled for inactivation in the mid-2060s. The carrier recently underwent modernisation and maintenance work.

For more information about that work, please seeCarrier USS George H W Bush finishes planned incremental availability .