Output 1.3: Bilateral Safeguards
Nuclear material and associated items exported from Australia under bilateral agreements remain in exclusively peaceful use and obligations under nuclear cooperation agreements (NCAs) are effectively implemented.
Performance Measures
- Australian Obligated Nuclear Material (AONM) is accounted for in accordance with the procedures and standards prescribed under relevant bilateral agreements.
- Foreign Obligated Nuclear Material (FONM) is accounted for in accordance with the procedures and standards prescribed under relevant bilateral agreements.
- Nuclear Cooperation Agreements (NCAs) are effectively implemented and administrative arrangements are reviewed and revised as necessary to ensure their continuing effectiveness.
Performance Assessment
Australian Obligated Nuclear Material
A principal responsibility of ASNO under the NCAs listed in Appendix A is to maintain accurate inventories of Australian Obligated Nuclear Material (AONM) as it moves through the international fuel cycle (as described in Appendix C). Based on ASNO's analysis of reports and other information from counterparts on AONM located overseas, ASNO concluded that all AONM remained in peaceful use and was satisfactorily accounted for. Details are provided in Table 10.
During 2021 there were 40 UOC shipments from Australia and ASNO took an average of 2.1 days to approve each shipment. ASNO notified the safeguards authorities in relevant countries of each export. In every case, relevant safeguards authorities confirmed to ASNO receipt of the shipment. ASNO also notified the IAEA of each UOC export to non-nuclear weapon states pursuant to Article 35(a) of Australia's Safeguards Agreement with the IAEA as well as each export to nuclear-weapon states under the IAEA's Voluntary Reporting Scheme.
A summary of transfers of AONM through the network of countries with NCAs is provided in Table 11. The AONM typically moves through several countries before its intended end-use of electric power production in civil nuclear reactors and research or development for civilian applications. AONM cannot be used for any military purpose.
This is the first reporting period that has included deconversion as a fuel cycle stage in the summary of AONM transfers. Deconversion is the process of reducing UF6 to UF4 or UO2 which is more stable for long-term storage. Uranium is converted into the chemical form UF6 for enrichment and the depleted UF6 is de-converted back to UF4 or UO2 for storage and the recovery of fluorine for re-use. Previously these transfers were regarded as internal transfers within Euratom, as the United Kingdom fell under the Australia-Euratom NCA until 31 December 2020. Details are listed in Table 12.
| Category | Location | tonnes14 |
|---|---|---|
| Depleted uranium | Canada, China, European Union15, Japan, Republic of Korea, Russia, United Kingdom, United States | 143,508 |
| Natural uranium | Canada, China, European Union, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, United Kingdom, United Kingdom, United States | 34,662 |
| Uranium in enrichment plants | China, European Union, Japan, United Kingdom, United States | 30,342 |
| Low enriched uranium | Canada, China, European Union, Japan, Mexico, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom, United States, Ukraine | 20,553 |
| Irradiated plutonium | Canada, China, European Union, Japan, Mexico, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom, United States | 227 |
| Separated plutonium | European Union, Japan | 1.5 |
| Total | 229,293 |
| Region/Country | tonnes UOC (U3O8) | Percentage of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | 3,705 | 76% |
| European Union | 543 | 11% |
| United States | 632 | 13% |
| Total | 4,880 | 100% |
| Fuel cycle Stage | Destination | U (tonnes) |
|---|---|---|
| Conversion | Canada | 4,026 |
| European Union | 370 | |
| United States of America | 475 | |
| Deconversion | United Kingdom | 841 |
| Enrichment | European Union | 442 |
| United Kingdom | 1,316 | |
| United States of America | 716 | |
| Fuel fabrication | European Union | 64 |
| Republic of Korea | 13 | |
| United Kingdom | 35 | |
| United States of America | 215 | |
| Reactor | European Union | 15 |
| Japan | 8 | |
| Switzerland | 8 | |
| Ukraine | 46 |
Foreign Obligated Nuclear Material
Just as Australia's bilateral treaty partners report on AONM in their jurisdiction, ASNO in turn maintains an inventory and reports on the movement of Foreign Obligated Nuclear Material (FONM) within Australia. FONM is nuclear material that an Australian company has imported in accordance with a nuclear cooperation agreement with a foreign partner, or nuclear material that has been produced using previously imported FONM. An example of this is the fuel and target plates for the Opal Reactor at ANSTO that are used in the production of radiopharmaceuticals.
Foreign obligations are in addition to the IAEA safeguards that apply to all nuclear material in Australia. Given the international, but jurisdictionally independent nature of the nuclear fuel cycle (as described Appendix C), nuclear material can be obligated by more than one bilateral treaty partner. Exporting countries may also choose not to place an obligation on particular types of nuclear material they export to Australia if they feel that IAEA safeguards alone can provide sufficient assurance of peaceful use.
ASNO tracks the movement of FONM in Australia and provides a FONM report to all bilateral treaty partners each year to reciprocate receipt of their annual AONM report. A breakdown of all FONM in Australia is at Table 13.
In addition to nuclear material, foreign obligations can be placed on non-nuclear material (referred to as 'associated material') such as heavy water, equipment or technology.
| Category | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Source Material | kilograms |
| Natural Uranium (other than UOC) | 49 |
| Depleted Uranium | 2,622 |
| Thorium (other than Thorium Ore Residues) | 739 |
| Associated or non-nuclear material | kilograms |
| Heavy water and deuterium | 10,695 |
| Special Fissionable Material | grams |
| 235U – low enriched | 200,117 |
| 235U – high enriched | 714 |
| 233U | 3.7 |
| Plutonium (other than 238Pu) | 1,195 |
Bilateral Agreements
Australia-Ukraine NCA and Australia-Russia NCA
As reported in ASNO's 2020–21 Annual Report, the first shipment of nuclear fuel containing AONM was transferred from Sweden to Ukraine in April 2021. Throughout 2021 there were eight nuclear fuel shipments from Sweden that contained AONM. In February 2022, in response to Russia's unilateral, illegal and immoral invasion, Ukraine declared martial law and concurrently suspended all domestic and foreign shipments of nuclear material. (See Current Topics.)
Australia continues to ban Australian uranium transfers to Russia. This ban has been in place since 2014 after Russia announced its purported annexation of Crimea.
The expansion of Australia's nuclear cooperation network
It has been 35 years since the Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Act 1987 come into force.18
At the end of June 1987, ASNO had implemented 10 NCAs covering 17 countries, including ten countries covered by Australia's NCA with European Union,19 and Australia had exported a total of 23,017 tonnes of uranium that was being tracked as AONM.
In comparison, ASNO has now implemented 25 NCAs that cover 43 countries. This increase has been driven by both additional countries joining the European Union, and thus falling under the Australia-Euratom NCA, as well as the negotiation of new NCAs. Australia has now exported a total 231,226 tonnes of uranium under these NCA,20 ten times more than when the Safeguards Act came into force.
Engagement on Nuclear Cooperation Agreements
During the reporting period, the COVID-19 pandemic prevented in-person reconciliation visits; however, ASNO maintained regular virtual engagement with bilateral partners, including participating in a virtual meetings with counterparts to discuss Nuclear Cooperation Agreements and the peaceful use of nuclear technology more broadly. In line with a relaxation of border restrictions, initial steps towards resuming regular reconciliation visits were made in May 2022 when Director General ASNO and supporting staff visited counterparts in the United States and Canada.
Director General ASNO, Dr Geoffrey Shaw visited Oak Ridge National Laboratory during a trip to the USA. (Image courtesy of ASNO)
13 Figures are based on yearly reports to ASNO in accordance with Australia's bilateral agreements and other information held by ASNO.
14 All quantities are given as tonnes weight of the element uranium or plutonium. The isotope weight of 235U is 0.711 per cent of the element weight for natural uranium and from one to five per cent for low enriched uranium.
15 Euratom is the European Atomic Energy Community. The Australian-Euratom NCA covers all 27 Members States of the European Union.
16 Export destinations for Australian uranium are decided by commercial factors including the availability of conversion capacity and customer preference.
17 Figures are for transfers completed between jurisdictions from 1 January to 31 December 2021.
18 A major part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Act 1987 took effect on 31 March 1987. Other parts came into force throughout that year.
19 In 1987, the Australia-Euratom agreement covered Belgium, Denmark, Federal Republic of Germany, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
20 The difference between exported uranium and the amount tracked AONM is the result of nuclear loss – that is uranium or plutonium 'burnt up' by a nuclear reactor. The fission products (atoms roughly half the size of uranium or plutonium) cannot be used in a nuclear weapon are therefore not safeguarded by the IAEA or tracked as AONM.
