The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) launched in 2006 calls for a dedicated, low-enriched uranium (LEU) stockpile to be owned and administered by the IAEA. The bank would aim to provide States with assurances of nuclear fuel supply and would seek to address potential disruptions of fuel shipments for nuclear power reactors. This is one among several multilateral nuclear approaches currently under consideration, including one by the Russian Federation to set up an LEU reserve under IAEA auspices in Russia. Matters of the fuel bank’s location, organization, and conditions for access are left to the Agency and its Member States to decide upon.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently pledged $10 million towards the fuel bank proposal. The UAE commitment was presented to IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei on 1 August by Mr. Hamad Al Kaabi, UAE Special Representative for International Nuclear Cooperation. The UAE contribution comes on the heels of three previous financial donations made by NTI, the United States and Norway, bringing the total committed amount for the nuclear fuel bank to $115 million.
This marks another important milestone towards supporting mechanisms for non-discriminatory, non-political assurances of supply of fuel for nuclear power plants, says IAEA Chief Dr. ElBaradei. A good move indeed.
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