Repatriation of radioactive waste from reprocessing

Castor casks at the Isar/Ohu interim storage site Source: PreussenElektra

Transports of German fuel elements for reprocessing abroad have been prohibited since 2005. Until then, the operators of the nuclear power plants had shipped about 6,670 tonnes of heavy metal (uranium and other metallic components of the irradiated nuclear fuel) abroad for reprocessing and other utilisation.

5,379 tonnes went to Orano (formerly AREVA NC, COGEMA) for reprocessing in France, 851 tonnes were shipped to Sellafield Ltd (formerly BNFL) for reprocessing in the UK. The remaining quantities were either processed at the Karlsruhe reprocessing plant (WAK) or, to a lesser extent, transported to the following foreign institutions:

• for reprocessing at Eurochemic in Mol (Belgium)
• for storage at the Central Interim Storage Facility for Spent Fuel (CLAB) in Sweden.
• for reprocessing or storage in Russia (only fuel assemblies from the Greifswald and Rheinsberg NPPs that had been manufactured in the former USSR).
• for further use at the Paks NPP in Hungary (only fuel elements from the Greifswald NPP).

Return shipments of waste from reprocessing plants

Sample handling of a transport container for return Source: BGZ/C. Mick

Even though, following the amendment of the law, there have not been any further transports from Germany to reprocessing plants since 2005, some of the waste from reprocessing is still stored at the corresponding plants abroad. In accordance with contractual obligations, the operators of German nuclear power plants as the waste owners must take back this waste. This complies with the principle that each country must dispose of its own radioactive waste.

Unlike irradiated fuel elements, the liquid medium- and high-level radioactive waste produced during reprocessing is vitrified and poured into glass moulds. The resulting waste products are placed in appropriate transport and storage containers. The solid medium-level radioactive waste produced during reprocessing, which consists of casings and structural parts of German fuel elements, is high-pressure-compacted and packed into appropriate containers.

In 2015, the Federal Government, the Länder, and the waste owners agreed to temporarily store the vitrified radioactive waste at on-site interim storage facilities in Hesse, Schleswig-Holstein, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, to await final disposal there.

According to the original plans for the repatriation of waste from reprocessing in France, five casks with vitrified medium-level radioactive waste were planned to be stored at the Philippsburg interim storage facility. In addition, the energy supply companies were obliged to take back 152 containers with high-pressure- compacted medium-level radioactive waste.

New contracts

Interior view of the Philippsburg on-site interim storage facility Source: EnBW

In 2021, the energy supply companies concluded new contracts with the French reprocessing plant in La Hague and the Federal Republic of Germany. These contracts provide for the return to Germany of four casks with high-level radioactive waste and 30 empty, internally contaminated transport casks, instead of 157 casks with medium-level waste. The four casks with high-level vitrified waste are to be stored at the Philippsburg interim storage facility. The 30 empty, internally contaminated transport casks are intended for the transport cask storage facility in Ahaus.

The Federal Republic of Germany is thus taking back the originally agreed activity inventory – or, in other words, the same amount of radioactivity - from France. Yet, the volume of radioactive waste is reduced considerably, so there will probably only have to be one transport from the French reprocessing plant.

Irrespective of this change in plans for the return of radioactive waste from France, BGZ mbH as the operator of the Philippsburg on-site interim storage facility has not withdrawn the application for storing five containers with vitrified intermediate-level radioactive waste in accordance with the previous concept. Since the licensing prerequisites had demonstrably been met, and this was a so-called bound decision, BASE was obliged to grant the licence. The licence will also be needed if the new agreement cannot be comprehensively fulfilled. In such a case, the intermediate-level radioactive waste would have to be returned to and stored at Philippsburg.

The obligation to return an estimated 7 casks each of vitrified high-level waste from the UK to the Brokdorf and Isar on-site interim storage facilities remains in effect.

No return transports to Gorleben

Gorleben loading station in November 2010 Source: Getty Images / Miguel Villagran

With the introduction of the Site Selection Act, which the German Bundestag passed by broad majority in 2013, the legislature also amended the Atomic Energy Act: According to Section 9a paragraph 2a of the Atomic Energy Act, since 1 January 2014 the energy suppliers have had to ensure that the remaining radioactive waste from reprocessing was taken back and stored at near-site interim storage facilities.

The term "near-site" refers to the locations of the nuclear power plants. Previously, the energy supply companies had transported the waste to the interim storage facility in Gorleben in Lower Saxony exclusively. To this date, 108 containers with vitrified high-level radioactive residues from reprocessing have already been placed in storage there.

Since the Gorleben transport cask storage facility is a central interim storage facility and not a near-site one, storage at the Gorleben transport cask storage facility is no longer possible.

Answers to key questions on the return of wastes from reprocessing