US embassy cable - 05PRETORIA2830

UNCLAS PRETORIA 002830 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
PLEASE PASS TO AF/S/TCRAIG, NP/NE/AKRASS, ABURKART 
DOE FOR NNSA/ABIENIASKI, MMANNING 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KNNP, ENRG, TRGY, SF 
SUBJECT: SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES SAFARI NUCLEAR 
REACTOR CONVERSION TO LEU 
 
REF: A. 03 SECSTATE 306217 
     B. 03 PRETORIA 05509 
     C. STATE 092684 
     D. PRETORIA 001974 
 
1. (U) On July 18, 2005, the Department of Minerals and 
Energy (DME) issued a press release announcing the South 
African Government's intention to phase out the use of Highly 
Enriched Uranium (HEU) fuel in its Safari research reactor 
located in Pelindaba.  The press release states that the 
remaining HEU will be used for the production of medical 
radioisotopes, and that conversion will guarantee such 
production for a longer period.  The full release reads as 
follows: 
 
Begin text. 
 
The Minister of Minerals and Energy, Mrs. Lindiwe Hendricks, 
has announced that the SAFARI-I nuclear research reactor of 
the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) located 
at Pelindaba will be converted from using High Enriched 
Uranium (HEU) to Low Enriched Uranium (LEU). 
 
"This markes yet another milestone in our government's 
programme to ensure that the safety of nuclear materials is 
enhanced globally." the Minister said. 
 
SAFARI-1 was commissioned in the 1960's as a Materials Test 
Reactor (MTR) and is now mainly utilised for the production 
of radioisotopes for nuclear medicine appications.  The 
remaining HEU will generally be applied to the manufacturing 
of medical isotopes, mainly Molybdenum-99, used in nuclear 
medicine diagnostics. 
 
The conversion of SAFARI-1 ensures that the future of the 
South African medical isotope production can be guaranteed 
for a longer period. 
 
There is increased effort internationally to phase out the 
use of HEU in nuclear research reactors.  The decision by the 
Minister, which is also supported by Cabinet, ensures that 
South Africa is in-step with the rest of the world.  "This is 
just one of a number of measures that we will be announcing 
which are aimed at ensuring the sustainability and integrity 
of our nuclear sector," the Minister added. 
 
Necsa will now convert its research reactor fuel 
manufacturing plant to use LEU. This conversion will be 
undertaken over a period of approximately three years and 
will provide several opportunities for young scientists to be 
engaged in new deveopment projects. 
 
The conversion will be regulated by the National Nucelar 
Regulator (NNR) and monitored by the International Atomic 
Agency (IAEA). 
 
Additional Technical Info: 
 
Many research reactors worldwide are fuelled by High Enriched 
Uranium (HEU) with a concentration of  90% of Uranium-235 
(U-235).  The use of HEU poses challenges in that it can also 
be used as source material in nuclear weapons.  HEU is 
classified as uranium material with a concentration of more 
than 20% U-235, whilst Low Enriched Uranium (LEU) contains 
less than 20% U-235.  Natural Uranium consists mostly of 
U-238 isotope, with about 0.7% of U-235.  Commercial (power) 
nuclear reactors use natural uranium that has been enriched 
from 3 to 20% of U-235. 
 
End text. 
 
2. (SBU) DME is aware of U.S. offers of technical and funding 
support for LEU conversion (Ref A), and that conversion is a 
pre-requisite for the return of spent U.S.-origin fuel 
assemblies to the United States.  Post recommends that we 
re-engage the South Africans on these issues within the 
context of a Joint Standing Committee on Nuclear Energy 
Cooperation (JSCNEC).  DME has advised us to expect soon a 
favorable response to Secretary Rice's letter of May 19 (Ref 
C) concerning the establishment of a JSCNEC. 
HARTLEY