United Cleanup Oak Ridge

What United Cleanup Oak Ridge does

United Cleanup Oak Ridge (UCOR) is the lead environmental cleanup contractor for the U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, performing deactivation, decontamination, demolition (D&D), and radioactive waste management at three federally owned sites in Oak Ridge, Tennessee: the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP), Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), and the Y-12 National Security Complex. Founded in 2011 and operating as a privately held LLC domiciled in Tennessee, UCOR is a strategic operating subsidiary of Amentum. The company employs approximately 2,200-2,500 workers across unionized trades, radiological control technicians, engineers, and a 500-person field safety/functional support organization under a Chief Safety Officer.

UCOR's core capability set centers on nuclear facility D&D, including the Argonne-developed dual-arm telerobotics system for remote waste handling, a nationally recognized Mercury Assessment and Control Program, FerroBlack mercury vapor coatings for the Alpha-4 facility, and operation of the Transuranic Waste Processing Center (TWPC). The company completed the first-ever cleanup of a gaseous diffusion uranium enrichment complex at ETTP four years ahead of schedule and $80 million under budget, a result that helped attract over $6 billion in private advanced-nuclear investment to the redeveloped site from tenants including Orano USA, Kairos Power, and X-energy. Most recently, UCOR delivered the six-year, 325,000-square-foot Alpha-2 Complex demolition at Y-12 with 1.38 million safe work hours and a zero DART rate, winning the 2026 TAUC Union Project of the Year Award.

UCOR's business model is a single-channel government services operation: revenue is generated exclusively through DOE Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management contracts awarded directly to UCOR, structured as cost-reimbursable or fixed-price vehicles. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and there is no commercial customer base. Distribution is direct contracting with the federal client; go-to-market is contract recompete rather than sales-led demand generation. UCOR is led by President and CEO Ken Rueter pending an April 2026 transition to Jim Blankenhorn, with COO Pat Timbes also being succeeded by Sam Dolynchuk. Strategic positioning increasingly emphasizes adjacent mission work, including a BUP-500 radioisotope recycling partnership with Zeno Power and the U.S. Space Force/Navy, and an MOU with the American Nuclear Society on workforce certification.

Name

United Cleanup Oak Ridge

Legal name

United Cleanup Oak Ridge LLC

Website

https://ucor.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

United Cleanup Oak Ridge (UCOR) is the DOE Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management's lead cleanup contractor, performing deactivation, demolition, and radioactive waste management at ETTP, ORNL, and Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee, serving solely as a federal government services contractor under Amentum ownership.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Remediation Services

NAICS

Hazardous Waste Treatment and Disposal (562211), Remediation Services (562910), Waste Treatment and Disposal (5622)

SIC

Hazardous Waste Management (4955)

akta.pro primary industry

Decontamination & Dismantling (D&D) of Nuclear Facilities (EUAKAFAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Demolition, Segmentation & Heavy Lift/Remote Handling (EUAKAFAD), Nuclear Plant Decommissioning & Site Restoration (EUACADAJ), Soil & Groundwater Remediation (Radiological and Mixed Waste) (EUAKAFAG), Nuclear Waste Management & Geological Disposal (EUACADAM)

Keywords

• Nuclear facility cleanup
• Environmental remediation services
• Radioactive waste management
• Decontamination and demolition
• Government environmental contracting

Headquarters

HQ city

Oak Ridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Government Contract Revenue: UCOR operates as a Department of Energy contractor providing environmental cleanup services under cost-reimbursement or fixed-price contracts for the DOE Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

United Cleanup Oak Ridge (UCOR) is the lead environmental cleanup contractor for the U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management. The company performs deactivation, decontamination, and demolition (D&D) of legacy nuclear facilities, manages radioactive and transuranic waste, and conducts mercury remediation across the Oak Ridge Reservation, including sites at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Y-12 National Security Complex, and East Tennessee Technology Park.

Product overview

United Cleanup Oak Ridge (UCOR) is an Amentum-led environmental cleanup contractor serving as the DOE Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management's lead contractor. UCOR operates as a single, unified service offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Their core offering encompasses environmental cleanup and remediation services across three primary DOE sites: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Y-12 National Security Complex, and East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP). These services include facility deactivation, decontamination, demolition (D&D), waste management, and technology development for hazardous nuclear waste cleanup. The company's approximately 2,200-2,500 workers deliver cleanup operations that enable site redevelopment for advanced nuclear energy development, as demonstrated by their successful ETTP cleanup completed four years early and $80 million under budget. UCOR also operates supplementary services including waste management at the Transuranic Waste Processing Center, landfill operations, and public engagement through the K-25 Interpretive Center.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Environmental Cleanup Services

Quantifiable outcome

• ETTP cleanup completed 4 years early and $80M under budget
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• American Nuclear Society (ANS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 March 2026UCOR signed an MOU with ANS establishing a framework for collaboration on workforce training and certification programs serving the nuclear industry. UCOR provides operational insights and subject matter expertise to inform ANS's professional development offerings, including the Certified Nuclear Professional credential program. Joshua Vajda, UCOR's chief engineer, serves as a subject matter expert.
• Zeno PowercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with DOE and UCOR to disassemble the BUP-500 radioisotope power system and recycle its strontium-90 fuel into approximately ten new Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) units for space and seabed applications under contracts with the U.S. Space Force and Navy. Public-private partnership built on 'Reduce, Recycle, and Revitalize' framework.
• U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)flagshipOthersUCOR is the lead environmental cleanup contractor for DOE's Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, responsible for cleanup at ETTP, ORNL, and Y-12. Multiple multi-year contracts govern the relationship.
• Westinghouse Electric CompanyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProcessed strontium-90 fuel material from BUP-500 partnership transported to Westinghouse's commercial radiological facility for further processing into RPS units.
• U.S. Army Corps of EngineerscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerThe Corps was tasked with overseeing construction of the $10 million William J. Wilcox, Jr. K-25 Interpretive Center at ETTP, built via interagency agreement with OREM funding.
• Smee + Busby ArchitectsminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerUCOR and Smee + Busby Architects designed the K-25 Interpretive Center facility and provided engineering support during construction.
• UT-BattellecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUCOR collaborated with UT-Battelle (operator of ORNL) to remove and store 17 containers from the Radiochemical Engineering Development Center (REDC), involving waste acceptance, transportation, planning, radiological protection, and safety support.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Tetra Tech: Large environmental consulting and engineering firm providing remediation, waste management, and environmental compliance services to DOE, DOD, and civilian federal clients; comparable in environmental scope though lighter on the heavy nuclear D&D delivery side.
• Amentum: UCOR's parent company and a major global government services provider offering environmental remediation, nuclear D&D, and federal services across DOE, DOD, and civilian agencies — provides corporate backbone and shared services to UCOR while competing in adjacent DOE scopes.

Direct peers

• Bechtel National: Prime DOE Office of Environmental Management contractor at the Hanford Site in Washington state, performing analogous nuclear facility deactivation, decontamination, and demolition (D&D) and tank waste retrieval work — directly comparable to UCOR's Oak Ridge scope.
• APTIM: Environmental and nuclear remediation contractor performing D&D, site remediation, and waste management for DOE, DOD, and commercial clients; directly comparable to UCOR's environmental cleanup service lines.
• Perma-Fix Environmental Services: Operates commercial and DOE-related radioactive and mixed waste treatment and disposal facilities; comparable to UCOR's hazardous/radioactive waste processing operations at the Transuranic Waste Processing Center.
• BWX Technologies (BWXT): Provides nuclear operations, D&D, and waste management services across DOE and Navy sites, including special nuclear materials handling and processing — overlapping with UCOR's transuranic and radiological work at Oak Ridge.
• EnergySolutions: Specializes in nuclear waste processing, decommissioning, and transportation, including commercial and government (DOE/Navy) radioactive waste operations — closely comparable to UCOR's transuranic waste processing and waste management capabilities.
• Fluor Government Group: Long-standing DOE legacy cleanup prime contractor (e.g., Savannah River Site, former Fernald, Portsmouth), delivering nuclear D&D and environmental remediation under cost-reimbursable contracts; mirrors UCOR's lead contractor role across multiple federal sites.
• Navarro Research and Engineering: Lead environmental management contractor at DOE's Paducah Site and provides nuclear D&D and environmental services across DOE sites, with similar cost-reimbursable contract structure and sole-source-style DOE relationships.

Emerging players

• Holtec International: Nuclear technology and services company with growing decommissioning, spent fuel management, and site restoration offerings — partially overlapping with UCOR's D&D and radioactive waste handling capabilities and potentially competing for future DOE contracts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/UCOR_TN
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCwKFG-yEQGDhnkjDeS2j3hw
• Facebookfacebook.com/UCOROakRidge
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ucor
• Instagraminstagram.com/ucor_tn

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about United Cleanup Oak Ridge