Nuclear site retires locomotive to original firm

Sellafield Ltd said it was replacing its diesel trains with electric engines

A locomotive used to transport nuclear material around the Sellafield nuclear site has been returned to the firm that rebuilt it.

Sellafield Ltd said it was replacing its diesel vehicles with electric ones, which included selling a redundant locomotive to Brodie Engineering in Kilmarnock to use as a shunting engine.

Brodie Engineering, which rebuilt the same locomotive in 1997, said it was "pleased to welcome it back".

It comes as Sellafield's rail network - one of the largest internal networks in England - features on the latest series of BBC Two's Great British Railway Journeys.

In the episode, broadcaster Michael Portillo drives a train normally used to transport spent nuclear fuel at the site.

Sellafield Ltd said in the last two years it had donated redundant diesel locomotives to Chasewater Railway in Staffordshire and Eden Valley Railways in Warcop.

Gareth Earle-Payne, from Brodie Engineering, said: "We are pleased to welcome back what we believe was one of the last locomotives to be rebuilt at our Caledonia Works site.

"Following condition assessment and refurbishment, we hope to return it to service to support the ongoing work on our site."

A spokesman for Sellafield Ltd described it as a "particularly satisfying solution".

"The site's rail system plays a vital role in supporting the UK's energy needs and clean-up mission, so as it transitions to a more efficient fleet of electric locomotives it needs to dispose of the older ones sustainably."