Licensing procedure for transports
BASE is the competent licensing authority for the transport of nuclear fuel and large sources. What requirements must a carrier fulfil, and what other parties are involved in the transport?
The basic rule is: safety is paramount in the transport of . A transport may only be carried out if the necessary conditions for safe transport have been met. To achieve this, the carrier must first obtain a licence, which is only granted if the carrier submits the relevant safety certificates in advance. The transport itself is supervised by the nuclear regulatory authorities and the competent home affairs authorities. Prior to a transport, the executing companies, the nuclear supervisory authorities and the competent home affairs authorities on the German side will check whether the conditions for which they are responsible have been met.
A licence is required for the transport of or large sources on public roads. The carrier must submit an application to the Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE). BASE checks whether all the requirements for safe transport have been met. Before the transport takes place, the supervisory authorities of the federal states verify that the requirements have been met and that all other licences required for the transport have been obtained.
Parties involved in the licensing procedure
Applicant
Information to be provided by the applicant
In order to obtain a licence for the transport of nuclear fuels or large sources, the applicant must, inter alia, declare
- What nuclear fuels or large sources are to be transported (type and quantity)?
- In which casks will they be transported?
- Who will carry out the transport?
- What means of transport will be used?
- What route(s) will be used for the transport?
- What safety measures are foreseen?
BASE
BASE review
BASE verifies whether the safety criteria for according to Section 4 of the Atomic Energy Act (AtG) or for large sources according to Section 29 of the Radiation Protection Act (StrlSchG) are met, and whether the legal provisions for the transport of dangerous goods (dangerous goods transport regulations) are complied with.
In particular, it will check whether the following requirements are met
- the safety of the package ( and cask)
- the trustworthiness of the applicant
- the trustworthiness and competence of the persons carrying out the transport
- Protection against sabotage or other interference by third parties
- the necessary financial security (liability insurance)
State authorities
Involvement of the competent State authorities
The Commission for Security and Protection of Nuclear Installations (KoSiKern) is involved in checking whether protection against malicious acts or other interference by third parties is ensured. The Ministries of the Interior of the Länder are involved in KoSiKern. KoSiKern issues a statement for all participating Länder. This statement is included in the licence to be granted by BASE.
In addition to these nuclear law aspects to be examined by BASE, there may be other reasons against an application for transport. In particular, these are issues that have to be assessed not by BASE but by other institutions, such as other state authorities. These authorities will check whether there is an overriding public interest in the type of transport, the time or the route (usually several alternatives are applied for). If this is the case, BASE is informed by the state authorities.
Granting of the licence
If all the licensing requirements are met, BASE must grant the licence (so-called administrative act requiring a specific decision).
Supervision and enforcement
Supervision of the transport of or large sources by road, inland waterway and sea is the responsibility of the Länder authorities. The Länder authorities are also responsible for air transport. The Federal Railway Authority is responsible for the supervision of transport by rail.
Checking that all the necessary licences - including those from foreign authorities - have been obtained is the responsibility of the consignor, the holder of the transport licence and the carrier. Only then can the transport be carried out. This will also be verified by the competent supervisory authorities.
It is the responsibility of the licence holder to determine which of the requested routes is used and when the transport takes place. This must be coordinated with the interior ministries of the Länder. The of coordination required depends on the type of transport. It can range from the carrier providing timely information to the interior ministries of the federal states affected by the transport to detailed coordination between the carrier and the Länder affected by the transport regarding the transport date and route. If necessary, the interior ministries can change the transport route and date.
Transports abroad
BASE only issues transport licences for and large sources for Germany. The Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control is responsible for granting export licences. According to the Atomic Energy Act (AtG), an export licence is to be granted, inter alia, 'if it is ensured that the to be exported will not be used in a manner that endangers the international obligations of the Federal Republic of Germany in the field of nuclear energy or the internal or external security of the Federal Republic of Germany'.
Stand: 2024.12.01