Nuclear fuel transport: Unit economics
Costly casks and ships, but distance hardly matters
What this tab covers What it costs to move a unit of energy this way: capital and operating costs, tariffs, utilisation and how it compares with the alternatives.Transport is a small part of the cost of nuclear electricity; the main costs are the casks, ships and security rather than distance.
Key costs
| Measure | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Large Type B cask | About 1.6 million USD each1 | Over 150 certified designs |
| Dedicated spent-fuel ship (Rossita) | 70 million EUR1 | Built for Russia's Arctic clean-up |
| Atlas railcar programme | About 33 million USD3 | Ten years of development, 2024 |
| Electricity from one fresh-fuel truckload | About 1.75 TWh1 | Calculated from 4 to 5 trucks per 1,000 MWe reactor-year at 90% load |
| US spent fuel to move eventually | Over 140,000 tonnes3 | Projected inventory by 2060, from more than 70 sites |
Where the money goes
| Item | Share or amount |
|---|---|
| Casks and packages (capital) | Largest item; share not published1 |
| Radioactive share of US hazmat shipping cost | Under 0.5%1 |
Shipping prices are commercial and rarely published, so a cost per MWh cannot be given with confidence. Even a high hypothetical USD 100,000 for a fresh-fuel truck trip would add only about USD 0.06 per MWh of electricity produced (calculated), far below grid or fuel costs.
Spent fuel is costlier because casks are heavy and few, and because each programme needs bespoke railcars, ships and escorts.
Sources
- Transport of Radioactive Materials (updated August 2026) World Nuclear Association, 2026
- DOE-designed railcar cleared for use World Nuclear News, 2024