Safeguarding Security on Nuclear-Powered Ships

No civilian maritime nuclear facilities have been commissioned in over four decades, but there’s been three major reports released this month on their future potential.

DNV’s latest report, Maritime nuclear propulsion: Technologies, commercial viability, and regulatory challenges for nuclear-powered vessels, provides a regulatory perspective on security, one of the key challenges for future adoption. As it says: Safety, security and non-proliferation remain paramount. Future installations must be designed to withstand collisions, groundings, and external threats such as sabotage or piracy. Remote monitoring and advanced communication capabilities will be essential, along with rigorous cybersecurity measures.

The report states that reactor compartments should be restricted as much as possible, aligning with designs that support remote monitoring and, potentially, the application of some autonomous functions. “In any case, due to their inherent mobility, any nuclear maritime installation should also require a high level of remote monitoring, fulfilling broad obligations for communication capabilities, as well as high levels of cybersecurity requirements to meet general emergency preparedness requirements.”

All nuclear material, including any type of nuclear fuel, is subject to continuous oversight under the safeguards system administered by the International Atomic Energy Agency, due to the risk of proliferation, says DNV. Any