Germany's federal radioactive waste company (Bundesgesellschaft für Endlagerung, BGE) signed an agreement on 22 August with Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe, BGR) to cooperate on site selection investigations for a high-level waste repository, as well as on the management of existing waste repositories. The agreement will be valid for the duration of the repository site selection process, as specified by the Law on the Search and Selection of a Site for a Repository for High Level Waste (the Site Selection Act – StandAG). It will also apply to the transfer of tasks under the Atomic Energy Act for the construction, operation and decommissioning of the Morsleben and Konrad repositories, as well as the decommissioning of the Asse II mine.
BGR will investigate specific issues on behalf of BGE in its search for a suitable location to host a facility for the disposal of high-level radioactive waste. In addition, BGR will conduct research and development work on behalf of BGE. In April 2017, the operator responsibilities for the Asse II mine and for the Konrad and Morsleben repositories were transferred from the Federal Office for Radiation Protection to BGE (part of the Federal Ministry for the Environment). BGE is also responsible for implementing the site selection procedure for repository sites for mainly high-level radioactive waste.