EDITORIAL PAGE — Uranium exports strictly regulated

For Cameco, extracting the uranium from any of its holdings in Saskatchewan is only half the job. As a result of strict regulations in the industry, actual delivery to clients can take anywhere from a month to a year-and-a-half.

A typical uranium sale begins when a nuclear utility company requests uranium suppliers to submit proposals to fill its uranium requirements. Some utilities will open sealed tenders and immediately award a contract, while others prefer a longer evaluation process.

Once the company has been chosen to fill a contract, negotiations on specific details begin. After signing with a Canadian utility such as Ontario Hydro or a foreign utility, the company makes delivery arrangements according to strict government regulations. All contracts with foreign utilities must be reviewed by the federal government’s Uranium Export Review Panel. By law, Canadian nuclear materials, equipment and technology cannot be used in connection with the production of nuclear explosive devices. Therefore, the company can only enter into supply contracts with countries that meet all the requirements of Canada’s nuclear non-proliferation policy. There must be government-to-government agreement, incorporating assurances and commitments connected with the use of uranium. Only countries that have signed the non-proliferation treaty, or that have made an equally binding commitment to non-proliferation, can receive their desired shipment. The review panel consists of representatives from Natural Resources Canada, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, as well as the Atomic Energy Control Board (AECB). Natural Resources, which currently provides the panel’s chair and secretariat, reviews commercial aspects of the contract to ensure, for example, an adequate future uranium supply for Canadian nuclear utilities and pricing terms reasonable for the market.

Foreign Affairs and International Trade representatives take the lead to ensure the contract is consistent with Canada’s nuclear non-proliferation policy. AECB representatives are primarily concerned with administrative aspects.

If a contract is found to be inconsistent with Canada’s uranium export policy, the panel must submit the contract to the three responsible ministers for a decision.

The panel’s review of a contract alerts the federal government to the company’s plan to export uranium, and Cameco must apply for an export permit from Foreign Affairs and International Trade and an export licence from AECB before the actual delivery can occur. Both can be obtained with a single application and must be renewed annually. This process is used to verify that uranium is exported precisely under the terms approved by the panel. AECB maintains an inventory of all Canadian nuclear material, subject to Canadian nuclear co-operation agreements with foreign countries, and implements these agreements on behalf of Canada. A key component of these agreements is acceptance of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards.

“After we receive all export approvals, we cannot move a pound of uranium outside our facilities without submitting a Form 59 to AECB which tracks and regulates the transportation of all uranium,” said Douglas Zabolotney, Cameco’s senior contract administrator. “This includes uranium transported from our mines in northern Saskatchewan to our processing facilities in Ontario.”

AECB sends the form to IAEA to fulfil Canada’s responsibilities to provide information. IAEA tracks the movement of uranium around the world from information it receives from its more than 100 member countries. Once approvals are received, Cameco’s uranium, about 60% of which has been processed into UF6 or UO2 at Cameco’s Port Hope conversion plants, is shipped to the utility using transportation methods approved by AECB. — From a recent issue of “The Source,” a Cameco publication.