The former salt mine in Gorleben, Lower Saxony - previously considered a possible site for geological disposal of Germany's high-level radioactive waste - has officially closed, it was announced on 17 September. The site was excluded from a list of potential repository sites published last year by waste management organisation Bundesgesellschaft für Endlagerung.

France's Orano said it has signed contracts with German utilities EnBW, PreussenElektra, RWE and Vattenfall for the return of all the German nuclear waste remaining at its La Hague reprocessing plant. The entry into force of the contracts - worth in total more than EUR1 billion (USD1.2 billion) - is subject to the formal agreement of the German and French governments.

PreussenElektra has received the second and final permit needed for the dismantling of the Unterweser nuclear power plant, while RWE Nuclear has received approval for its so-called 'sub-project 2' for the dismantling of the Lingen nuclear power plant. Both approvals were issued by the Lower Saxony Ministry for the Environment, Energy, Building and Climate Protection.

International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi has informed the agency's Board of Governors that Iran intends to use indigenously-produced uranium enriched up to 20% U-235 in the manufacture of fuel for the Tehran Research Reactor, an IAEA spokesperson told World Nuclear News today. In doing so, as part of a multi-stage process, Iran will also produce uranium metal enriched up to 20% U-235.

A new technology using drones is set to be deployed for the remote monitoring of radiation measurements at former uranium mining and processing areas in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with gamma spectrometers have been developed by a German consortium in collaboration with the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The Group of Seven countries will lead a technology-driven transition to net zero, according to a joint statement at the end of their three-day summit in Cornwall, England. The G7 is an inter-governmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the USA. As host of the first in-person G7 Summit in almost two years, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson asked the other leaders "to seize the opportunity to fight and build back better from coronavirus, uniting to make the future fairer, greener and more prosperous".

Framatome has announced the completion of a key milestone in the development of a robotic-assisted handling system to support decommissioning and waste management for the nuclear industry. Testing has confirmed the operation of robotic systems for handling and sorting high-level waste components, paving the way for increased automation.

EDF subsidiary Cyclife Sweden AB has signed a long-term contract with German nuclear operator PreussenElektra for the transport and processing of 16 steam generators. These large metal components will be transported from the Unterweser, Grafenrheinfeld, Grohnde and Brokdorf nuclear power plants in Germany to Cyclife's industrial site in Nyköping, Sweden, for processing.

The German government has reached an agreement with EOn, EnBW, RWE and Vattenfall on compensation for the forced premature closure of their nuclear power reactors. The utilities are set to receive a total of almost EUR2.5 billion (USD3.0 billion) in compensation after agreeing to drop all legal actions against the government related to the nuclear phaseout. The final regulation related to the compensation will be made into law by the end of this year.

The single-unit Grohnde nuclear power plant in Germany has produced more than 400 terawatt hours of electricity since it started up in 1984 - the only reactor to have achieved this milestone. Meanwhile, unit 1 of Canada's Darlington nuclear power plant has set a new world record with 1106 consecutive days of continuous operation.

Polish climate and environmental activists are asking Germany to reconsider its 2011 decision to phase out nuclear power. On 18 December, activists from the FOTA4Climate initiative submitted to the German embassy in Warsaw an open letter signed by Polish scientists, intellectuals, activists and citizens.

Industrial services provider Bilfinger has completed the dismantling of the two steam generators at the shutdown Mülheim-Kärlich nuclear power plant in Germany. Bilfinger, which was contracted by plant owner RWE in 2017, dismantled the steam generators in situ. Each of them measured around 23 metres in height, 4 metres in diameter and 450 tonnes in weight.