SEDS Workshop: Safety of extended dry storage

Once a year, GRS organises a workshop on the safety of extended dry storage of spent nuclear fuel (SEDS).

As there is currently no repository for high-level radioactive waste in the world, extended storage is an issue that concerns many countries. The aim of the workshop is therefore to promote scientific exchange between the different countries on research concerning long-term safety for casks and inventories.

Background on storage

Spent fuel assemblies are unloaded from the core of the reactor and then stored in the spent fuel pool until their radioactivity and heat have decayed sufficiently for them to be packed in transport and storage casks. Most of these are so-called CASTOR casks. Until a repository is available, the casks are stored in storage facilities. However, the originally planned storage period of a maximum of 40 years will not be sufficient in all cases until a repository is completed. Safe storage with subsequent transport to a repository site must therefore also be ensured for the extended periods.

Work by GRS on extended storage

On behalf of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety and the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, GRS conducts research in several projects on safety aspects that are relevant during the extended storage of spent fuel assemblies and other high-level radioactive waste. Since 2017, GRS has organised the workshop on extended interim storage each year.

SEDS Workshop 2024

The next SEDS workshop is scheduled to be held in presence in Garching on 15 - 17 May 2024. The presentations will be given in English. Interested parties can register on this page.