World Nuclear Transport Industry
Nuclear power
- Nuclear power currently supplies
around 16% of global electricity supply.
- Nuclear power has unique
advantages due to its fuel source - uranium. Uranium has huge
energy potential compared with fossil fuels.
- 1 tonne of nuclear fuel is
equivalent to burning approximately 120,000 tonnes of coal.
- Unlike fossil fuels, nuclear power
leads to relatively small quantities of carbon dioxide being
released, a greenhouse gas thought to contribute to global
warming.
- The annual operation of a 1,000
MWe light water reactor requires an average fuel load of 27 tonnes
of uranium dioxide, containing 24 tonnes of enriched uranium. The
assemblies containing this are normally supplied in one consignment
occupying 4 to 5 trucks.
- Uranium offers a long-term source
of energy. Unlike fossil fuels, it can be recycled.
- Spent fuel still contains 96% of
the original uranium, 1% of plutonium, and also about 3% of fission
waste products. The reusable uranium and plutonium can be used to
produce new fuel such as Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuel.
- MOX fuel has incredible energy
potential. Just one MOX fuel pellet has the energy equivalence of
one tonne of coal.
Transport
- Transport of nuclear materials has
been carried out safely and routinely for over five decades. During
this period there has never been a transport incident that has
caused significant radiological damage to people or the
environment.
- About 20 million transports of
radioactive materials (which may be either a single package or a
number of packages sent from one location to another at the same
time) take place around the world each year.
- Nuclear power is not the only
industry which relies on the transport of radioactive materials. In
fact, the vast majority of transports - around 95% - are not fuel
cycle related. Radioactive materials are used extensively in
medicine, agriculture, research, manufacturing, non-destructive
testing and in the exploration of minerals.
