Nukem Technologies

Last updated
NUKEM Technologies GmbH
Company type Subsidiary
IndustryNuclear engineering
Predecessor Nukem
Headquarters,
Germany
Key people
Sergey Molodtsov (Managing Director)
Services Radioactive waste and spent fuel management
Nuclear engineering and consulting
Nuclear decommissioning
Number of employees
170
Parent Atomstroyexport
Subsidiaries NUKEM Technologies Engineering Services GmbH
Website www.nukemtechnologies.de

NUKEM Technologies GmbH is a nuclear engineering and consulting company managing radioactive waste and spent fuel and decommissioning of nuclear facilities. The company is located in Alzenau, Germany. It was established in 2006 as a subsidiary of Nukem Energy. On 14 December 2009, Nukem Technologies was sold to Russian Atomstroyexport for €23.5 million. [1] [2]

Nukem Technologies builds the interim used fuel storage facility and the solid waste facility for the closed Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant. [3] [4] [5] In 2007, the company was awarded a contract by South Africa's PBMR Pty for the construction of a pilot fuel plant for the pebble bed modular reactor project. [6] Other projects include construction of dry spent fuel storage facilities at the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant, complex for treatment and conditioning of solid and combustible liquid radwaste at the Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant, waste treatment centre at the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, industrial complex for solid radwaste management at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, and dismantling of the reactor block of Brennilis Nuclear Power Plant. In April 2024 NUKEM filed insolvency proceedings in Germany.

Transnuklear

Transnuklear (TN) GmbH was founded in 1966 as a subsidiary of Nukem and had been responsible for the transportation of nuclear fuel in West Germany until its operating licenses were suspended.

In the 1980s, illegalities occurred in the transport of radioactive waste to and from West Germany and the reprocessing centre (SCK CEN) in Mol, Belgium. SCK CEN employees were bribed by Transnuklear employees to receive higher-level nuclear waste than permitted. [7]

The irregularities came to light after 21 October 1986, when an accident occurred in Kwaadmechelen with a Transnuklear transport from Krümmel Nuclear Power Plant to SCK CEN in Mol. Nuclear waste being transported did not correspond to the documents. [8]

On 8 April 1987, Nukem informed the public prosecutor of Hesse of irregularities by Transnuklear during the 1981-1986 period. Nukem was aware of the illegal activities a month earlier, but waited until after the 5 April 1987 Hessian state election, which gave a narrow majority for Federal Minister for Nuclear Safety Walter Wallmann (CDU). [9]

The bribes concerned millions of Belgian francs for hundreds of transports in nuclear waste. On 10 December 1987, three Transnuklear employees were arrested. The manager of Transnuklear, Hans Holtz, committed suicide in jail a few days later.

On 17 December 1987, German Environment Minister Klaus Töpfer instructs the nuclear authorities of Hesse to rescind the permits of Transnuklear. On 13 January 1988, Töpfer announced an investigation into transportation of nuclear fuel by Nukem/Transnuklear to Pakistan and Libya. This would be a violation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. [10]

On 21 January 1988, the European Parliament established a committee of inquiry into the nuclear waste scandal. [11] The German Bundestag and the Belgian Chamber of Representatives also established a parliamentary inquiry committee.

Together with the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, this scandal led to the creation of the Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz in Germany and the Federal Agency for Nuclear Control (FANC) in Belgium.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pebble-bed reactor</span> Type of very-high-temperature reactor

The pebble-bed reactor (PBR) is a design for a graphite-moderated, gas-cooled nuclear reactor. It is a type of very-high-temperature reactor (VHTR), one of the six classes of nuclear reactors in the Generation IV initiative.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dry cask storage</span> Radioactive waste storage method

Dry cask storage is a method of storing high-level radioactive waste, such as spent nuclear fuel that has already been cooled in a spent fuel pool for at least one year and often as much as ten years. Casks are typically steel cylinders that are either welded or bolted closed. The fuel rods inside are surrounded by inert gas. Ideally, the steel cylinder provides leak-tight containment of the spent fuel. Each cylinder is surrounded by additional steel, concrete, or other material to provide radiation shielding to workers and members of the public.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant</span> Decommissioned nuclear power plant in Visaginas Municipality, Lithuania

The Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant is a decommissioned two-unit RBMK-1500 nuclear power station in Visaginas Municipality, Lithuania. It was named after the nearby city of Ignalina. Due to the plant's similarities to the infamous Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in both reactor design and lack of a robust containment building, Lithuania agreed to close the plant as part of its agreement of accession to the European Union. Unit 1 was closed in December 2004; Unit 2 in December 2009. The plant accounted for 25% of Lithuania's electricity generating capacity and supplied about 70% of Lithuania's electrical demand. It was closed on December 31, 2009. Proposals have been made to construct a new nuclear power plant at the site, but such plans have yet to come to fruition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SCK CEN</span> Belgian Nuclear Research Centre

SCK CEN, until 2020 shortened as SCK•CEN, is the Belgian nuclear research centre located in Mol, Belgium. SCK CEN is a global leader in the field of nuclear research, services, and education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chernobyl New Safe Confinement</span> Protective building over Ukrainian nuclear reactor

The New Safe Confinement is a structure put in place in 2016 to confine the remains of the number 4 reactor unit at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, in Ukraine, which was destroyed during the Chernobyl disaster in 1986. The structure also encloses the temporary Shelter Structure (sarcophagus) that was built around the reactor immediately after the disaster. The New Safe Confinement is designed to prevent the release of radioactive contaminants, protect the reactor from external influence, facilitate the disassembly and decommissioning of the reactor, and prevent water intrusion.

Nuclear decommissioning is the process leading to the irreversible complete or partial closure of a nuclear facility, usually a nuclear reactor, with the ultimate aim at termination of the operating licence. The process usually runs according to a decommissioning plan, including the whole or partial dismantling and decontamination of the facility, ideally resulting in restoration of the environment up to greenfield status. The decommissioning plan is fulfilled when the approved end state of the facility has been reached.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belene Nuclear Power Plant</span> Abandoned nuclear power plant in northern Bulgaria

The Belene Nuclear Power Plant is an abandoned nuclear power plant 3 km from Belene and 11 km from Svishtov in Pleven Province, northern Bulgaria, near the Danube River. It was intended to substitute four VVER-440 V230 reactors of the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant that were decommissioned as a prerequisite for Bulgaria to join the European Union.

The Chamber of Representatives, the lower house of the Belgian Federal Parliament, has the right to conduct parliamentary inquiries pursuant to article 56 of the Belgian Constitution, which provides that "Each Chamber has the right of inquiry". The Senate also had a right to enquiry until 2014. Committees of inquiry were rarely set up until 20 years ago, and have been used increasingly in the recent past, dealing with matters deemed of major public concern or apparent governmental failure.

Atomstroyexport (ASE) JSC (Russian: Атомстройэкспорт) is the Russian Federation's nuclear power equipment and service exporter. It is a fully owned subsidiary of Rosatom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-nuclear movement in Germany</span>

The anti-nuclear movement in Germany has a long history dating back to the early 1970s when large demonstrations prevented the construction of a nuclear plant at Wyhl. The Wyhl protests were an example of a local community challenging the nuclear industry through a strategy of direct action and civil disobedience. Police were accused of using unnecessarily violent means. Anti-nuclear success at Wyhl inspired nuclear opposition throughout West Germany, in other parts of Europe, and in North America. A few years later protests raised against the NATO Double-Track Decision in West Germany and were followed by the foundation of the Green party.

Nuclear power in the European Union accounted for approximately 26% of total electricity production in 2019 and nearly half of low-carbon energy production across the EU.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nuclear power debate</span> Controversy over the use of nuclear power

The nuclear power debate is a long-running controversy about the risks and benefits of using nuclear reactors to generate electricity for civilian purposes. The debate about nuclear power peaked during the 1970s and 1980s, as more and more reactors were built and came online, and "reached an intensity unprecedented in the history of technology controversies" in some countries. In the 2010s, with growing public awareness about climate change and the critical role that carbon dioxide and methane emissions plays in causing the heating of the Earth's atmosphere, there was a resurgence in the intensity of the nuclear power debate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">High-level radioactive waste management</span> Management and disposal of highly radioactive materials

High-level radioactive waste management addresses the handling of radioactive materials generated from nuclear power production and nuclear weapons manufacture. Radioactive waste contains both short-lived and long-lived radionuclides, as well as non-radioactive nuclides. In 2002, the United States stored approximately 47,000 tonnes of high-level radioactive waste.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garigliano Nuclear Power Plant</span> Nuclear power plant in India

Garigliano Nuclear Power Plant was a nuclear power plant located at Sessa Aurunca (Campania), in southern Italy. It was named after the river Garigliano.

Belgium has two nuclear power plants operating with a net capacity of 5,761 MWe. Electricity consumption in Belgium has increased slowly since 1990 and in 2016 nuclear power provided 51.3%, 41 TWh per year, of the country's electricity.

Lithuania does not have any operational nuclear power reactor. It operated two RBMK reactors at Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant which were shut down in 2004 and 2009.

Nukem GmbH, together with its subsidiary Nukem Inc., markets nuclear fuel components and speciality products utilities worldwide. Since the 1970s, Nukem has transitioned from playing a modest role in uranium brokerage to becoming one of the world's largest intermediaries in the international nuclear fuel market.

ONDRAF/NIRAS is the Belgian National Agency for Radioactive Waste and enriched Fissile Material. It is established by Belgian law since 1980.

Events in the year 1986 in Belgium.

References

  1. "Atomstroyexport buys NPP decommissioning technology". Kommersant . RIA Novosti. 2009-12-25. Archived from the original on January 5, 2010. Retrieved 2009-12-26.
  2. "Nukem Technologies now owned by ASE". World Nuclear News . 2009-12-15. Retrieved 2012-10-07.
  3. "Construction go-ahead for Ignalina waste stores". World Nuclear News . 2009-09-03. Retrieved 2012-10-07.
  4. "Lithuania has problems disassembling the old Ignalina power plant". CE Weekly. Centre for Eastern Studies. 2010-05-26. Archived from the original on 2012-04-01. Retrieved 2012-10-07.
  5. Hyndle-Hussein, Joanna (2011-09-14). "Lithuania: Problems with decommissioning of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant". CE Weekly. Centre for Eastern Studies . Retrieved 2012-10-07.
  6. "Nukem awarded contract at PBMR fuel plant". World Nuclear News . 2007-08-13. Retrieved 2012-10-07.
  7. "Scandal rocks nuclear power industry in West Germany" (PDF). Nature. 14 January 1988.
  8. "Transport illégal de déchets radioactifs Le centre nucléaire de Mol, en Belgique, est mis en accusation". Le Monde. 9 January 1988.
  9. Betriebsgenehmigung für Hanauer Nuklearfabrik NUKEM ausgesetzt, 14. Januar 1988
  10. "Bonn Inquiry Hints Pakistan And Libya Got Atom Material". New York Times. 15 January 1988.
  11. "A Nuclear Watergate: West Germany's "Transnuklear Affair"". Science for Peace. 1 June 1988.