FANR

About FANR

​The Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR) is the independent government body charged with regulating and licensing nuclear activities in the UAE, which in addition to the nuclear power programme, includes radioactive material and radiation sources used in medicine, research, oil exploration and other industries.

The Authority determines all matters relating to the control and supervision of the nuclear sector in the UAE, in particular nuclear safety and security, radiation protection and safeguards. All obligations under the relevant international treaties, conventions or agreements entered into by the UAE are carried out by FANR.

The Authority is embarking on an effort to build an emirates workforce to oversee the nuclear sector in the UAE​

FANR and industrial radiography

Companies operating in the UAE and involved in industrial radiography might have noticed over the past two years how the FANR has been interacting in a very efficient way to improve safety and security standards with regards to use and possession of regulated materials.

Most of the NDT (Non Destructive Testing) companies operating in the UAE do import and use the following type of radioactive materials.

Iridium 192- half life 73.8 days

Selenium 75 - 119.7 days

Cobalt 60 - 5.2 years

Caesium 137 - Half life 30 years

While cobalt 60 is rarely used Iridium and Selenium account for most of the radioactive material import. In addition to this FANR closely monitors the import and movement of Depleted Uranium content (DU) which is a shielding material used in industrial radiography projectors like Techops 660, Delta 880 etc.

Some of the main divisions of FANR are

Radiation Protection

Safeguards

Security

All organisations involved in the use of regulated materials are required to abide by the various regulations set by the FANR (for Eg FANR regulation no 24, Regulation 13, Regulation 10) and regulatory guides associated with them. 

It has now become a mandatory requirement for the companies who might have taken the security and safety factor for granted in the past. Penalties are enforced to companies violating the regulations. 

FANR departments holds workshops at least once a year to educate and provide information to companies on the various programs and regulations.

What is really noticeable is that FANR staff are very much approachable compared to the other bodies involved in the same functions in the past.There is a strong communication network through email, telephone and direct visits.