International

The Paris-based Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)-Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) – together with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) – will soon publish new guidance on improving cost estimates of nuclear decommissioning projects. Simon Carroll, a senior analyst with the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority, told delegates at the Nuclear Decommissioning & Waste Management […]

There is no cause for concern regarding the shipment into the United States of 10,000 metric tons of radioactively contaminated material from Canada, according to a senior manager with the company that will process the waste. UniTech Services Group, of Longmeadow, Mass., in October filed for separate Nuclear Regulatory Commission licenses to import and export […]

The biannual plenary meeting of the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism is being convened this week in Tokyo, Japan, where partner nations will review progress and share recommendations on the group’s short-term activities. The Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism (GICNT), co-chaired by the United States and Russia, is a partnership of over 80 […]

The United Nations General Assembly on Monday released the first draft of a legally binding global prohibition on nuclear weapons, which details bans on the use, production, transfer, and testing of such arms. In October, 123 U.N. member states voted to begin negotiations on the treaty; 38 voted against the process, including nuclear powers France, […]

As the United States wrestles with management of spent fuel from the nation’s nuclear reactors, Ukraine expects to consolidate its material two years from now, Holtec International announced last week. Ukraine’s consolidated interim storage facility is due to open in 2019 in the Exclusion Zone around the Chernobyl nuclear plant. It would hold spent fuel from […]

The Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site (SRS) last month began receiving liquid highly enriched uranium from Canada under a controversial program that will have the material traveling major U.S. highways on its way to South Carolina for the next few years. The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) said in an April 21 site report […]

The Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site (SRS) last month began receiving liquid highly enriched uranium from Canada under a controversial program that will have the material traveling major U.S. highways on its way to South Carolina for the next few years. The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) said in an April 21 site report […]

The government of Kazakhstan, aided by the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration, on Friday opened a nuclear security training center in the town of Alatau, the NNSA announced Monday. The center is intended for the training of local and international personnel from various nuclear facilities and organizations in “advanced nuclear security topics,” including physical protection, nuclear […]

The U.S. intelligence community has identified Russia as a threat to the U.S. nuclear weapons program due to its violation of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, intelligence leaders said Thursday on Capitol Hill. Russia was a recurring topic during a Senate intelligence committee hearing on worldwide threats and in the written statement of Daniel […]

Russia is willing to reconsider its 2016 decision to suspend participation in its agreement with the United States to dispose of a combined 68 metric tons of weapons-usable plutonium – but only if the U.S. moves forward with its current method to eliminate the material, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry. Under the 2000 Plutonium […]

The State Department has shed more light on the circumstances surrounding Russia’s violation of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, highlighting in a new report its outreach to Moscow on the matter. The INF Treaty prohibits the fielding of ground-based cruise and ballistic missiles with flight ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers. U.S. officials have been […]

The State Department has shed more light on the circumstances surrounding Russia’s violation of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, highlighting in a new report its outreach to Moscow on the matter. The INF Treaty prohibits the fielding of ground-based cruise and ballistic missiles with flight ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers. U.S. officials have been […]

A Chinese citizen could face up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty Friday in U.S. federal court to attempting to illegally export a material that can be used in nuclear weapons programs, the Department of Justice announced. Fuyi Sun, 53, violated the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) by attempting to obtain and ship high-grade M60 […]

After nearly 20 years, the U.S. Senate must undertake a new review of the potential nonproliferation benefits provided by the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, CTBT Organization Executive Secretary Lassina Zerbo and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov wrote in a commentary published last week in The Diplomat. Senators rejected ratification of the treaty in 1999, […]

Unprecedented shipments of liquid highly enriched uranium (HEU) from Canada to the Savannah River Site in South Carolina will begin this spring, now that the 60-day window has closed to appeal a judge’s decision allowing the Energy Department transports. Groups that had sued against the shipments decided against appealing the directive. Judge Tanya Chutkan, of U.S. […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration and the FBI together conducted an advanced radiation detection and investigative techniques training last month in Almaty, Kazakhstan, the NNSA said Wednesday in a blog post. The training consisted of lectures and activities for 35 participants to develop the skills necessary to respond to nuclear and radioactive material smuggling events, […]

National Nuclear Security Administration officials on April 6 joined representatives from the U.S. Embassy in Moldova and the Moldovan government to mark the installation of a radiation detection system at the nation’s Chisinau International Airport. “The system of 18 radiation portal monitors and associated communications systems will enhance efforts to prevent smuggling of dangerous radioactive materials […]

Unprecedented shipments of liquid highly enriched uranium (HEU) from Canada to the Savannah River Site in South Carolina will begin this spring, now that the 60-day window has closed to appeal a judge’s decision allowing the Energy Department transports. Groups that had sued against the shipments decided against appealing the directive. Judge Tanya Chutkan, of U.S. […]

Foreign ministers representing the Group of Seven (G7) countries this week expressed their support for existing arms control agreements and suggested a gradual approach toward achieving a nuclear-weapon-free world. At the end of their meeting in Lucca, Italy, the diplomats from the G7 – consisting of the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada, Italy, […]

Foreign ministers representing the Group of Seven (G7) countries met this week in Lucca, Italy, to discuss global security issues, releasing a statement that supported existing arms control agreements and suggested a gradual approach toward achieving a nuclear-weapon-free world. The G7 – consisting of the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada, Italy, and Japan […]

The Canadian government this week requested that utility Ontario Power Generation provide even more information regarding its plans for a deep geologic repository near Lake Huron for storage of low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste from three nuclear power plants. This latest development could further slow development of the facility, though by how long remains an open […]

The new diplomatic push at the United Nations to establish a global prohibition on nuclear weapons could undermine the path laid out under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty to one day rid the world of such armaments, a senior U.S. diplomat said this week. “A ban treaty will come at enormous cost to the NPT political […]

It was not clear this week how a Canadian company’s multibillion-dollar offer to acquire engineering giant Atkins would affect the company’s work on the Energy Department’s legacy nuclear cleanup operations. The companies on Monday confirmed they were in talks for SNC-Lavalin Group of Montreal to acquire London-based Atkins for about $3.5 billion. The transaction would include […]

It was not clear Wednesday how a Canadian company’s multibillion-dollar offer to acquire engineering giant Atkins would affect the company’s work on the Energy Department’s legacy nuclear cleanup operations. SNC-Lavalin Group of Montreal on Monday confirmed it had offered some $3.5 billion to buy London-based Atkins. The company has a presence, among other places, at […]

Air Force Gen. John Hyten, commander of U.S. Strategic Command, said Tuesday he is “reviewing” the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, underscoring the Defense Department’s focus on addressing Russia’s violation of the 1987 accord. U.S. officials in February said Russia has deployed a ground-launched nuclear-capable cruise missile and that the administration plans potential responses to the […]

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority expects to spend £3.24 billion ($4.03 billion) in its just-started 2017-2018 financial year to carry out its work of decommissioning 17 nuclear facilities around the United Kingdom, according to the organization’s latest business plan. The U.K. government will provide £2.36 billion of the funding and commercial operations the remaining £0.88 billion. […]

The nuclear arsenals of the United States and Russia continue to fluctuate as the two countries work to meet the terms of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), according to the latest aggregate data Monday from the U.S. State Department. The 2010 bilateral accord requires each country by next February to cap its […]

The United Kingdom as of April 1, 2016, held 4.6 million cubic meters of radioactive waste and expects to produce at least another 170,000 cubic meters through the year 2125, according to the government’s latest accounting. The current and future stockpile of 4.77 million cubic meters, covering all wastes after packaging, does not include 1 […]

The United Kingdom on Monday announced the early termination of the 2014 contract for management and decommissioning of its 12 Magnox nuclear sites, and a more than $120 million settlement with two companies that partnered on an unsuccessful bid for the work. An independent inquiry is also planned into the procurement process that led to […]

The head of U.S. military forces in Europe said Tuesday the United States should do more to bring Russia back into compliance with the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty; former U.S. officials on Thursday then discouraged a “tit-for-tat” response and gave their own suggestions to the new administration. The Trump administration has determined that Russia is […]