British nuclear reprocessing firm British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) announced last Friday it was putting up for sale Westinghouse, its power station building arm in the United States.
State-owned BNFL – operator of the Sellafield waste reprocessing plant in Cumbria, northern England – said in a statement there had already been a "number" of approaches for Westinghouse.
The group was being advised on the sale by investment bank NM Rothschild and Sons.
The US unit was a prime asset with "all the skills to prosper in the private sector", BNFL added.
Mike Parker, group chief executive, said: "Westinghouse is a very successful operation in its own right.
"It has reached all its targets, continues to win new business and is in an excellent position to capitalise on the China new build programme."
The sale process would determine whether a disposal would realise appropriate value for the US-based nuclear power station construction and services business, Parker added.
