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Devonport to restart submarine defuelling at 14 Dock
The UK is preparing to restart submarine reactor defuelling at Devonport's 14 Dock as part of work to manage retired nuclear-powered Royal Navy vessels. Specialized infrastructure and regulatory arrangements are required to remove spent fuel safely before subsequent storage and dismantling stages can proceed. The capability is particularly relevant to the backlog of decommissioned first-generation pressurized-water-reactor submarines awaiting defuelling at the naval base. Reactivating the dock is an infrastructure and support milestone rather than the commissioning of a new submarine or a claim that all retired boats have already been processed.