An International Atomic Energy Agency Centre of Excellence for Safeguards and Non-Proliferation has been launched at uranium enrichment services provider Urenco's Capenhurst site in the UK. The centre will be fully operational in 2025.

IAEA Director General Grossi unveiled a plaque at the launch ceremony at Capenhurst (Image: Urenco)

The centre, which is a Urenco facility, will establish a nuclear non-proliferation testing and training base for the benefit of IAEA safeguards and the international non-proliferation system. This will enable the development and testing of nuclear verification technologies, as well as the training of practitioners.

The project, which is the only facility of its kind globally, is a collaboration between the IAEA and Urenco's owners - the governments of the UK, the Netherlands and Germany - and the US government. It sees the repurposing of a decommissioned gas centrifuge enrichment plant brought back into active service for this unique safeguarding purpose.

The centre will help the IAEA enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of safeguards implementation at gas centrifuge enrichment facilities. IAEA safeguards are an essential component of the international nuclear non-proliferation system, and the centre will support the IAEA in its efforts to independently verify the peaceful use of such facilities.

An event was held at the Capenhurst site to mark the launch of the centre attended by representatives from the IAEA and the UK, Dutch, German and US governments.

"We are very proud to be able to contribute and collaborate with this international community to help grow expertise in nuclear safeguards by building a dedicated facility at our UK site," said Urenco CEO Boris Schucht. "We will continue to use our expertise and technologies to support non-proliferation and the safeguarding of civil nuclear operations."

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi added: "Staying ahead of technology advances is a crucial part of the IAEA's work as the world's nuclear watchdog. The Centre of Excellence for Safeguards and Non-Proliferation at Capenhurst will strengthen IAEA safeguards inspectors' training and enhance the research and development of safeguards equipment and techniques.

"I would like to commend the governments of Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States, and the executive team at Urenco for their understanding of the always-evolving demands of safeguards and nuclear non-proliferation, and their leadership in turning this facility from an idea into a valuable hands-on tool in the pursuit of international peace and security."

Urenco operates plants in Germany, the Netherlands, the UK and the USA using its own centrifuge technology to enrich uranium for the use as a nuclear fuel for civil power generation.