Companies failed to protect Torness workers from asbestos - watchdog

Two companies failed to protect workers from asbestos exposure at a nuclear power station in East Lothian, a government watchdog has found.

The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) launched an investigation at Torness after operator EDF reported an incident at the site in March, when workers could have been exposed to asbestos in a valve within the steam system.

It found that the material had been removed from a similar valve in 2024 but this had not been recorded, meaning those carrying out more recent work did not know of the risks.

The ONR has now ordered both site operator EDF and contractor Trillium Flow Services UK to make improvements by the end of June.

EDF said it did not believe workers had actually been exposed, but was making changes to its processes.

Asbestos is a general name given to several naturally occurring fibrous minerals that have crystallised to form fibres.

The strong fibres do not dissolve in water or evaporate, and are resistant to degradation from chemicals, heat and fire. Asbestos was once thought of as an ideal material for insulation in buildings, boilers and pipes.

But due to the health risks from inhaling asbestos, the importation of blue and brown asbestos has been banned in the UK since 1985. This ban was extended to include white asbestos in 1999.

The incident in March occurred when workers were carrying out overhaul activities in a valve within the steam system.

The ONR found there was no risk to nuclear safety, the public or the environment at the time, but the probe raised broader concerns about the reliability of the site's asbestos register.

Inspectors discovered that during similar maintenance on a similar valve in 2024, material assumed to be asbestos had been identified and removed.

This information was not recorded in the site's asbestos register - the central record used to track the location and condition of asbestos across the site.

As a result, workers began activities without being informed of the possible presence of asbestos and without appropriate controls being in place to manage exposure to and the spread of asbestos.

Staff at Torness reported that the register did not record instances of asbestos on plant equipment, and it was not consistently consulted when maintenance work was planned.

None of the workers have required medical treatment and they will receive ongoing monitoring as part of routine occupational health surveillance.

Following an investigation EDF was served with one notice for failing to maintain a written plan identifying areas of the site where asbestos is, or may be, present and another for failing to prevent or adequately reduce employee exposure to asbestos during valve overhaul activities.

The energy company has voluntarily suspended all asbestos removal work carried out by its maintenance team pending compliance with the notices.

Trillium Flow Services UK were also served two notices.

The first was for failing to make appropriate arrangements to monitor the close-out of work logs to ensure accurate information about asbestos is maintained.

The second was for failing to assess whether asbestos is present or liable to be present before undertaking maintenance work on valves.

Both EDF and Trillium Flow Services UK are required to comply with the notices by 30 June.

Gary Cook, ONR's joint head of safety regulation said the companies failed to manage asbestos risks at the site.

He said: "This incident highlights the importance of accurate record-keeping and ensuring workers have the information they need before beginning any maintenance activity.

"We will engage with both companies during the period of the improvement notices to ensure positive progress is made to address these shortfalls."

A spokeswoman for EDF said it was committed to ensuring that Torness power station is a safe place to work.

She said: "We proactively reported this to the ONR and have voluntarily suspended all EDF asbestos removal work.

"This will not restart until we have complied with the improvement notices.

"We do not believe there was any actual exposure but are actively working to introduce changes to our processes and will work with the ONR to ensure it is content that the improvements required have been fully implemented."