Press Release on Design-Basis Threat Workshop
09.11.2008September 11, 2008, saw the opening of a two-day Design-Basis Threat workshop, hosted by the Ulba Metallurgical Plant, in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan; with participants, of the event, discussing issues of development, and improvement, of accounting, monitoring and physical protection systems for nuclear and radioactive materials.
Experts from Kazakhstan, the United States, the Russian Federation, Cote d’Ivoire, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, the Republic of Korea and Ukraine, who have joined the Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism, are attending the Design-Basis Threat workshop which is implementing one of the items of the action plan adopted at the June 10-11, 2007 third meeting of the Global Initiative member states which took place in Astana .
The Kazakhstan side is represented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of the Emergency Situations, the National Nuclear Center, the JSC National Atomic Company Kazatomprom, the JSC Ulba Metallurgical Plant and MAEC-Kazatomprom LLP.
Guidelines to be discussed during the workshop:
- Enhancement of accounting, monitoring and physical protection of nuclear materials (NM);
- Maintenance of civilian nuclear facilities’ physical security;
- Joint research and development of operational capabilities for detection of and prevention from illicit handling of nuclear materials at transnational level;
- Upgrading of tracking facilities for nuclear materials illegally handled, recapture of such materials and establishment of reliable control mechanism/procedures for nuclear materials illegally detained;
- Non-admission of sheltering, providing economic and financial resources to terrorists seeking nuclear materials acquisition;
- Development of criminal and civil law procedures re such criminal activity;
- Reinforcement of response procedures, mitigation of consequences and investigation of terror attacks using nuclear materials, including hardware engineering for detection of nuclear materials;
- Assistance to interchange of information and information control.
The Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism was originally put forward by the Russian and US Presidents at the G8 summit in St. Petersburg in July 2006, with several tens of countries having now joined the Initiative. Kazakhstan was among first states to support the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism.
Note
KAZATOMPROM is the national operator of Kazakhstan for the export of uranium and its compounds, rare metals, nuclear fuel for NPPs, special-purpose equipment, technologies and dual-purpose materials. 100% of Kazatomprom’s shares belong to the Government represented by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan . Kazatomprom represents a holding managing core activities: geology exploration, production of uranium, nuclear fuel cycle products, construction of reactors, NPPs, non-ferrous metallurgy and construction materials, energy, scientific support of production, personnel training and social support. More than 25 000 people work for the Company with Kazatomprom, today, being among the world's leading uranium producers.
Ulba Metallurgical Plant (JSC Ulba) is one of the top-ranked world operations manufacturing fuel pellets of uranium dioxide for nuclear power plants and beryllium, tantalum and niobium products. The plant is a subsidiary of Kazatomprom. Ulba has hi-tech and knowledge intensive uranium, beryllium and tantalum operations, a well-developed infrastructure of auxiliary facilities and a rich research base: the central research laboratory, the central plant laboratory, the central instrumentation laboratory, an IT center, environmental and occupational safety laboratory and the RD institute. JSC Ulba has also introduced an environmental management system which has been functioning since 2002. In 2003, this system was certified under ISО 14001. In 2006, the system was recertified in compliance with ISО 14001, Rev. 2004.
