Purdue Submits Bid to Run Los Alamos Laboratory

Purdue President Mitch Daniels says the collaboration "will move us forward in areas core to both institutions."

Purdue University has confirmed to Inside INdiana Business it has submitted a proposal to run the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. The university declined to provide any further details, however the Journal & Courier reports Purdue is one of several universities competing for the $2 billion contract.

Purdue President Mitch Daniels tells the publication the university’s bid is a partnership with Bechtel National, which is currently part of a consortium that has run the laboratory for more than 10 years.

"We’ve submitted a bid. And that’s all I know and really all I can say," Daniels told the Journal & Courier. "We’re proud to compete for things like this. I do believe this is the sort of level Purdue should be playing at, let me put it that way."

The Los Alamos National Laboratory is overseen by the National Nuclear Security Administration, which is expected to make a decision on the contract in the coming months. The laboratory was established in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project, according to its website. Now, the facility’s primary responsibility is "assuring the safety and reliability of the nation’s nuclear deterrent."