British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL), the UK state-owned nuclear power company, has put its marketing and trading division up for sale. 

The company have hired PriceWaterhouseCoopers to manage the sale, which they hope will be completed by the end of the year. There are also rumours among the Unions that the company may sell the operating contracts at its Magnox nuclear power stations, although this has not been confirmed. 

BNFL is the holding company of British Nuclear Group, Nexia Solutions and Westinghouse. The latest annual report for the company has shown that the four BNFL directors stand to receive a shared bonus of £2.5m if all the assets of the company are sold, with chief executive Mike Parker set to personally receive nearly £1m if the board's strategic objectives are met. 

Crucially however, these bonuses depend on the sale of the British Nuclear Group, its specialist site management and nuclear clean up business, which is taking longer than anticipated.

No prices have been specified for any of the potential sales.