AN engineering has expanded its presence in the nuclear sector after securing a multi-million pound deal.

Amec, which runs its European headquarters from Darlington, will work alongside Jacobs Engineering Group and Balfour Beatty at Sellafield, in Cumbria.

Bosses say the joint venture, valued at between £240m and £336m, will address waste treatment operations at Sellafield’s Box Encapsulation Plant (BEP).

Amec told The Northern Echo workers from its Darlington base could be involved in the work, covering project management and design issues.

The BEP site is designed to treat reactor waste by containing it in concrete and readying it for long-term storage.

The deal comes just days after Amec, which has more than 400 staff in Darlington, revealed a memorandum of understanding with China National Nuclear Corporation to work on the civil nuclear sector in the UK and China.

It also secured a four-year contract to help decommission the former Dounreay research plant, on the Caithness coast, in Scotland, to carry out safety case preparation and environmental support in addition to waste services.

Samir Brikho, Amec chief executive said: “We have successfully delivered complex projects at Sellafield for more than 50 years, during which we have played a key role in the development and delivery of many of the major waste treatment plants on the site.

“The BEP project is another significant nuclear waste management initiative in the programme to reduce the historic waste issues on Europe’s most complex nuclear site.”

Earlier this year, The Northern Echo revealed Amec plans bring 700 jobs to the North-East, including supervisors, welders and pipe fitters to meet its expanding order book.

In February, Amec also agreed to a £2bn deal to buy US company Foster Wheeler, which has offices in Middlesbrough, in a bid to win more contracts in oil and gas markets.

Balfour’s involvement in the Sellafield work was announced on the same day the firm revealed chairman Steve Marshall intends to leave his role.

Mr Marshall, who has run the firm since May, made the decision after highlighting a further £75m shortfall in its UK construction division.