Babcock International had sought a certificate of lawfulness to change the use of a car park on Keith Road – with the loss of 86 spaces – and build a storage facility on it.
The much-delayed project aims to dismantle seven old nuclear subs at Rosyth, remove the radioactive waste and recycle as much of the metal as they can into “tin cans and razors”.
The new facility is needed for phases three and four and will be enclosed by three metres high walls, with new gates and drainage infrastructure.
More than £200m has been spent on the Submarine Dismantling Project so far. It sustains 500 jobs, the MoD say. (Image: Newsquest) READ MORE: MoD aiming to ‘speed up’ the dismantling of old nuclear subs at Rosyth
In the application it was described as a laydown area and contractors compound that will be roughly 45 metres by 35 metres in size, and take up around half an acre of land close to dry dock number three.
Although 86 parking spaces will be lost, Babcock said there are plenty of spaces elsewhere on the site. – and the plans also include gates and drainage infrastructure.
Swiftsure is the first vessel being disposed of at Rosyth and it’s scheduled to be recycled by 2026.
In total, the project will dispose of 27 nuclear subs.
READ MORE: Create a ‘centre of excellence’ to dismantle ageing submarines, says MP
Seven have been laid up at Rosyth for decades – Dreadnought has been there so long, since 1980, that most of the low-level radiation has “disappeared naturally” – and there are 15 at Devonport in Plymouth.
Five are still in service with the Royal Navy.
The UK Government said earlier this year that the project has already invested more than £200 million into the dockyard and the wider UK supply chain and sustains more than 500 jobs.