Dear Sir/Madam,.



Reply to your e-mails about the transport of UF6 (Uranium Hexa Fluoride) by Urenco to the Russian Federation.



On December 6th the Minister of the Environment and Spatial Planning again granted permission for these transports so they can be carried out safely, in certified containers and according to international rules. In addition to a permit for the transports granted by the Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning, the Minister of Economic Affairs has granted a permit for the export of UF6 to the Russian Federation.



The Ministry of Economic Affairs has tested the application of the permit against the directions of the Nuclear Suppliers Group. These directions have the following conditions:



formal government guarantees which explicitly exclude use in a nuclear explosive;
the agreement between the Netherlands and the Russian Federation in which is laid down that UF6 is sufficiently physically secured;
guarantee agreement of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) with the Russian Federation about base materials and particular nuclear fuels;
safety about processing, storage, use and (re) export of UF6.


The transports concerned do not carry radio-active waste. UF6 is processed (enriched) in Russia and sent back to the Netherlands. The part which remains in Russia after enrichment, is not waste because it has several purposes. For instance enriching it again, making it usable as fuel in nuclear power stations or processing it in order to be used as base material in the chemical industry.



Greenpeace has brought an appeal against the permits granted by the Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning and the Ministry of Economic Affairs. In advance of a final judgment, the Council of State has refused the appeal made by Greenpeace to suspend these permits; among other things because it is not a matter of transporting nuclear waste. Currently there is a notice of objection with regard to the legitimacy of the permit granted by the Ministry of Economic Affairs. The hearing is on September 6th.



With kind regards,

Public Information Officer
Postbus 51 Informatiedienst