A brief history

Since 1993, AWE has been managed on behalf of the Ministry of Defence under a Government-Owned/Contractor-Operated (GOCO) arrangement.

A new management contract was awarded on 1 April 2000 to AWE Management Ltd, for a period of ten years, with an option to extend to a total of 25 years. This option was exercised by the MoD in January 2003.

As shareholders in AWE Management Ltd, the three partner companies – Jacobs Engineering, Serco and Lockheed Martin – are not involved in the day-to-day management of AWE. The task of delivering the contract has been delegated by AWE Management Ltd to AWE Plc. 

All direct staff are employed by AWEplc, giving long-term stability if contract management changes are introduced. The GOCO arrangement gives AWE some of the freedoms and flexibility of the private sector, enabling it to bring commercial best practice to the operation and management of strategic government assets.