• ENUSA, the parent company of the ENUSA Group, is working within a new framework of collaboration with the company Indústrias Nucleares do Brasil (INB)

The ENUSA Group, in line with the objectives established in its Strategic Plan, continues to carry out commercial diversification and internationalisation actions. Last week, ENUSA received a delegation from the company Indústrias Nucleares do Brasil (INB) at its facilities.

Last Tuesday, the President of the ENUSA Group welcomed the members of the delegation, led by its President, Carlos Freire. The initial opening meeting took place at the company’s headquarters in Madrid, and the lines of collaboration and points of convergence between the two companies were discussed with the aim of advancing in a new framework of collaboration between the two companies.

This new framework encompasses four fundamental axes:

  • Collaboration in the field of the uranium concentrates market, especially at a time when the market is under stress due to the Ukrainian crisis.
  • The development of passive environmental treatment solutions for soil remediation and environmental treatments such as those developed at the Saelices El Chico mine, which could be applied in the environmental restoration project INB is working on in Poços de Caldas (Minas Gérais).
  • The application of techniques for the characterisation and treatment of contaminated surfaces using drones.
  • The application of technologies and equipment for the automation of nuclear fuel handling and inspection processes at INB’s fuel fabrication line in Resende (Rio de Janeiro).

The INB delegation visited the ENUSA facilities in Juzbado and Saelices. In Juzbado, they visited the fuel assembly factory, where they discussed aspects related to process automation, inspection, advances and updates in the equipment developed by ENUSA.

The INB delegation visited the company’s facilities in Saelices, where they visited the Tekura Project implementation sites, including the Tecnosoles preparation plant and were able to see at first hand the efficiency of the environmental treatments developed at the facility, more specifically in the reduction of acid drainage to be treated. The next step to be taken by ENUSA, the MINETRA Project, was also discussed, which was of interest to INB, which sees in these projects and in the techniques they employ possibilities for application in the country.

Mariano Moreno, president of the ENUSA Group, said: “INB has come a long way to position itself as a reference in the nuclear industry and has been able to position Brazil as one of the four countries, together with the United States, China and Russia, with uranium reserves and enrichment technology. It shares with ENUSA the quest for constant improvement, process quality and safety above all else”.

For his part, Carlos Freire, president of INB: “If the uranium market were to become more flexible, Brazil could become a uranium supplier for Spain. On the other hand, ENUSA’s experience is recognised and could be of great use to us in the restoration of the Poços de Caldas mine”.

About Indústrias Nucleares do Brasil

Founded in 1988, Indústrias Nucleares do Brasil focuses its business on uranium. They operate in the ore production chain and in the nuclear fuel cycle, which includes mining, processing, enrichment, powder and pellet manufacturing, and the fuel that supplies Brazilian nuclear power plants.

It is a public company linked to the Ministry of Mines and Energy which, on behalf of the Federal Government, exercises a monopoly on the production and sale of nuclear materials. It also offers fuel engineering services and the production of fuel element components.

INB’s activities are authorised and inspected by the National Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN) and by the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA). The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), an agency linked to the United Nations (UN), supervises its production, carrying out regular inspections.

Visit the INB website here.