[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 57 (Tuesday, March 25, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16296-16298]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-06509]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration


International Framework for Nuclear Energy Cooperation (IFNEC) 
Industry Workshop on Developing Options and Pathways for Disposal of 
Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Waste

AGENCY: ITA, DOC.

ACTION: Notice.

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Event Description

    The U.S. Department of Commerce's International Trade 
Administration (ITA) is coordinating with the U.S. Department of Energy 
to organize participation by U.S. companies in the International 
Framework for Nuclear Energy Cooperation (IFNEC) Industry Workshop on 
Developing Options and Pathways for Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and 
High-Level Waste, to be held May 5-6, 2014 in Bucharest, Romania. IFNEC 
is an international forum consisting of 63 countries and three 
international organizations, and is sponsoring this workshop to 
facilitate a more focused dialogue directed at understanding the 
challenges of spent fuel management facing countries that are beginning 
to develop nuclear power. ITA is seeking the participation of up to 10 
U.S. companies or trade associations in the civil nuclear sector in the 
IFNEC Workshop. U.S. companies will have the opportunity to participate 
in interactive panel discussions and meet with senior foreign 
government and industry officials to discuss commercial options for the 
long-term management and disposal of spent fuel.

Event Setting

    The IFNEC Workshop will bring together IFNEC policy makers, nuclear 
industry representatives, energy planning agencies and international 
organizations to consider current options for countries' management of 
the back end of the nuclear fuel cycle and potential options for 
commercially-based regional or multinational spent fuel disposal 
services.

IFNEC Background

    IFNEC is led by an Executive Committee, which is made up of 
ministerial-level officials or their designees from Participant 
Countries that meet annually to set the IFNEC agenda for the coming 
year. Observer Countries and International Organizations are welcome 
and encouraged to attend the ministerial. IFNEC has two working groups, 
the Reliable Nuclear Fuels Working Group (RNFWG) and the Infrastructure 
Development Working Group (IDWG), that focus on modes for reliable fuel 
supply and infrastructure development respectively. In 2012, the RNFWG 
was directed by the Executive Committee to hold a workshop on 
commercially-based approaches to used fuel management.

Event Scenario

Workshop format

    The IFNEC Workshop will provide a setting in which representatives 
of governments and the global nuclear industry will address issues 
involving potential commercial options for the long-term management and 
disposal of spent fuel through presentations and interactive panel 
discussions.
    The Workshop goals are to:
     Clarify industry interest in the development of final 
waste options and discuss what is needed to incentivize industry 
involvement;
     Discuss the need for final waste management capabilities 
and the role of

[[Page 16297]]

social contract issues in the development of disposal options;
     Explore what factors are needed to develop disposal 
options;

Event Dates and Draft Agenda*

Monday, May 5

9:00-9:15 a.m. Opening Remarks
9:15-12:00 p.m. Session 1: Waste Management Capabilities and the Role 
of Social Contract Issues. This session will provide newcomer 
countries' perspectives on key disposal issues, disposal options, waste 
management capabilities for disposal, and lessons learned regarding 
public interactions, siting facilities, and political and social issues 
associated with interim and final disposal.
12:00-1:30 p.m. Lunch
1:30-3:00 p.m. Moderated and interactive Panel Discussion on Session 1
3:00-3:30 p.m. Break
3:30-5:00 p.m. Session 2: Prerequisites for the Development of a 
Commercial Disposal Services Market. This session will seek to define 
the necessary frameworks required for a commercial disposal service 
market in the following areas: waste management, waste inventory, 
interim storage, public acceptance, laws and standards, stabilities and 
reversibility, respective responsibilities, multi-generation stakes, 
and unlimited liability.

Tuesday, May 6

9:00-9:30 a.m. Session 3: RNFSWG Activities Addressing Disposal 
Options. The RNFSWG will provide an update on what has been done to 
date to address the need for disposal options and identify the issues 
associated with their potential development. Items to be discussed 
include: CFS Discussion Paper, Current Practices Paper, work on 
examples of international agreements needed, identification of issues 
that will need to be addressed, alternative approaches to disposal 
options.
9:30-12:00 p.m. Session 4: Industry Interest in the Development of 
Final Waste Options. This session will give industry the opportunity to 
provide their feedback and reactions to the RNFSWG's concept of a 
Commercial Disposal Services Market. U.S. industry participants will 
have the means to actively participate and influence the direction in 
which the RNFSWG proceeds.
12:00-1:30 p.m. Lunch
1:30-3:00 p.m. Wrap-up Discussion. This discussion is designed for 
additional reactions to the previous sessions and the identification of 
possible future activities for the RNFSWG to consider in supporting the 
development of final waste management capabilities and options .
    * Following the Conclusion of the Workshop the RNFSWG Meeting will 
convene.
3:30-5:00 p.m. RNFSWG Meeting of Members--Separate Agenda

Event Goals

    U.S. civil nuclear industry representatives have in the past found 
IFNEC meetings and workshops to be ideal opportunities to network with 
senior U.S. and foreign government representatives interested in the 
potential of nuclear power. Workshop participants will benefit from the 
expertise that the U.S. civil nuclear industry has amassed in this 
sector and may potentially learn how to better partner with U.S. 
industry on future nuclear power projects, thus facilitating increased 
U.S. exports.
    Organizers and participants will engage in a dialogue on ways to 
develop national capabilities for long-term waste management and the 
benefits of potentially developing viable regional or international 
disposal options, particularly for countries with small reactor fleets. 
This workshop will also enable participants to share experiences 
regarding existing national disposal programs and to discuss specific 
aspects related to international waste disposal cooperation. In 
addition, the workshop will seek to identify the role of industry and 
government in developing such options and prerequisites for the 
development of a market for such services.

Participation Requirements

    Organizations interested in participating in the Workshop must 
complete and submit an application package for consideration by the 
ITA. Applicants will be evaluated based on their ability to meet the 
selection criteria outlined below. Up to 10 organizations will be 
selected to participate in the IFNEC Workshop from the applicant pool 
of U.S. companies and trade associations. Only companies or trade 
associations representing companies that are already doing business 
internationally may apply. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling 
basis in the order that they are received.

Fees and Expenses

    After an organization has been selected to participate, the IFNEC 
Steering Group Chair will send out a formal invitation. There is NO 
participation fee associated with participating in the IFNEC Workshop; 
however, participants will be responsible for personal expenses 
associated with lodging, most meals, incidentals, local ground 
transportation, air transportation from the United States to the event 
location, and return to the United States.

Conditions for Participation

    Applicants must submit to ITA's staff (see Contact) a completed 
mission application signed by a company official, together with 
supplemental application materials addressing how their organization 
satisfies the selection criteria listed below by March 28, 2014. If the 
ITA receives an incomplete application, it may be rejected or ITA may 
request additional information.
    In question 11 of the trade event application, each applicant is 
asked to certify that the products and services it intends to export 
through the event are either manufactured or produced in the United 
States, or, if not, are marketed under the name of a U.S. firm and have 
U.S. content representing at least 51 percent of the value of the 
finished good or service. For purposes of this event, meeting the 51 
percent content requirement is not a prerequisite for mission 
participation and applicant responses to question 11 will serve as 
supplemental information the ITA is reviewing applications.
    In the case of a trade association, the applicant must certify that 
as part of its event participation, it will represent the interests of 
its members.

Selection Criteria for Participation

    Selection will be based on the following criteria:
     The applicant's experience producing technology or 
providing services to civil nuclear energy projects or, in the case of 
a trade association, the experience of its members;
     The global breadth of the applicant's experience with 
civil nuclear energy projects;
     The extent and depth of the applicant's activities in the 
global civil nuclear energy industry;
     The applicant's company or, in the case of a trade 
association, the association's members' potential for, or interest in, 
doing business with IFNEC member countries;
     The applicant's ability to identify and discuss policy 
issues relevant to

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U.S. competitiveness in the nuclear energy sector, with special 
emphasis on financing; and
     Consistency of the applicant's company or trade 
association's goals and objectives with the stated scope of the IFNEC 
Workshop.
    Referrals from political organizations and any documents containing 
references to partisan political activities (including political 
contributions) will be removed from an applicant's submission and not 
considered during the selection process.
    Selected applicants will be asked to sign a Participation Agreement 
with the Department of Commerce which includes the following mandatory 
certifications (applicants that cannot attest to these certifications 
cannot participate):
     Certify that the products and services that it intends to 
highlight as examples at the workshop would be in compliance with U.S. 
export controls and regulations;
     Certify that it has identified to the Department of 
Commerce for its evaluation any business pending before the Department 
that may present the appearance of a conflict of interest;
     Certify that it has identified any pending litigation 
(including any administrative proceedings) to which it is a party that 
involves the Department of Commerce; and
     Certify that it and its affiliates (1) have not and will 
not engage in the bribery of foreign officials in connection with a 
company's/participant's involvement in this mission, and (2) maintain 
and enforce a policy that prohibits the bribery of foreign officials.

Timeframe for Recruitment and Participation

    Recruitment for participating in the IFNEC Industry Workshop on 
Developing Options and Pathways for Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and 
High-Level Waste as a representative of the U.S. nuclear industry will 
be conducted in an open and public manner, including publication in the 
Federal Register, posting on the Commerce Department trade mission 
calendar, notices to industry trade associations and other multiplier 
groups. Recruitment will begin immediately and conclude no later than 
March 28, 2014. The ITA will review applications and make selection 
decisions on a rolling basis beginning March 28, 2014. Applications 
received after March 28, 2014 will be considered only if space and 
scheduling permit.

Contact

    Jonathan Chesebro, Senior Nuclear Trade Specialist, Industry & 
Analysis--Office of Energy and Environmental Industries, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration, Phone: 
(202) 482-1297, Email: [email protected].

    Dated: March 18, 2014.
Edward A. O'Malley,
Director, Office of Energy and Environmental Industries.
[FR Doc. 2014-06509 Filed 3-24-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DR-P