WASHINGTON, D.C. - The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) today welcomed the decision taken by the Council of the European Union to contribute 25 million Euros towards the establishment of an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nuclear fuel bank.

The EU contribution, and similar contributions from the United States ($50 million), the United Arab Emirates ($10 million) and Norway ($5 million), are to be matched by a $50 million grant from the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) for the establishment of an international fuel bank under IAEA auspices. The NTI grant is conditioned on the receipt of $100 million in matching grants and action by the IAEA Board of Governors to establish such a fuel bank.

"We applaud the European decision to support an IAEA nuclear fuel bank," said NNSA Deputy Administrator Will Tobey. "This reflects our common interest in promoting the use of nuclear energy in ways that reduce proliferation risk and provide nations with viable alternatives to indigenous development of enrichment technology," Tobey said.

In August, U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman officially issued a letter to the IAEA Director General Mohamed El Baradei, donating nearly $50 million for the purpose of establishing an International Nuclear Fuel Bank (INFB). This donation builds on the NNSA’s close cooperation with the IAEA to provide financial and in-kind contributions that aid U.S. efforts to prevent nuclear proliferation and combat nuclear terrorism.

For more information about NNSA’s work with the IAEA, go to: www.nnsa.energy.gov/news/1773.htm.

Established by Congress in 2000, NNSA is a semi-autonomous agency within the U.S. Department of Energy responsible for enhancing national security through the military application of nuclear science in the nation's national security enterprise. NNSA maintains and enhances the safety, security, reliability and performance of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile without nuclear testing; reduces the global danger from weapons of mass destruction; provides the U.S. Navy with safe and effective nuclear propulsion; and responds to nuclear and radiological emergencies in the U.S. and abroad.

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