Cogema Appeals Court Blocking of Australian Nuclear Shipment

["Sandy Perle" <sandyfl@EARTHLINK.NET>]

Cogema Appeals Court Blocking of Australian Nuclear Shipment

  

Paris, March 16 (Bloomberg) -- Cogema SA, the world's largest 

processor of nuclear fuel, said it appealed a French court ruling 

that has blocked delivery of spent nuclear fuel from Australia, 

saying it has authorization to receive the materials. 



A court in the northern French port of Cherbourg ruled yesterday 

that Cogema lacked the authorization to take delivery and said a 

ship containing the used fuel could not unload it. The vessel was 

scheduled to deliver the fuel yesterday, Cogema said. 



The ruling is the latest hurdle for Cogema. Shipments between 

France and Germany were halted for more than two years after 

French authorities said the walls of containers holding spent-fuel 

rods carried radiation above permitted levels. 



``Cogema would like to recall that it has all the necessary 

authorizations to transport, unload, take delivery of and store these 

materials,'' Cogema said in a press release on its Web site. 



The fuel is being shipped under a contract between the French 

company and Ansto, the Australian Nuclear Science and 

Technology Organization, which was validated by the Australian 

and French governments, Cogema said. 



The 360 spent-fuel elements that make up the shipment come from 

a research reactor, and two more shipments will probably be 

needed to transport the remainder of the 1,300 fuel elements 

covered by the contract, the company said. 



The elements are being transported in special, cylindrical casks 

weighing about 20 tons each. 



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Sandy Perle                                     Tel:(714) 545-0100 / (800) 548-5100                                     

Director, Technical                             Extension 2306                                  

ICN Worldwide Dosimetry Service         Fax:(714) 668-3149                                          

ICN Pharmaceuticals, Inc.                       E-Mail: sandyfl@earthlink.net                                                      

ICN Plaza, 3300 Hyland Avenue           E-Mail: sperle@icnpharm.com                       

Costa Mesa, CA 92626



Personal Website: http://sandyfl.nukeworker.net

ICN Worldwide Dosimetry Website: http://www.dosimetry.com

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