Certificates and Approvals for the Use and Transport of Explosives

Certificate of Competence for Authorised Blasters in Open-Pit Mining in the Mining Industry

Any natural person responsible for blasting in open-pit within the mining industry must hold a certificate of competence for authorised blasters, in accordance with the Royal Decree of 24 April 2022.

To obtain this certificate, you must submit a request to the Directorate-General of Quality and Safety via post or email:

FPS Economy, SMEs, Middle Classes and Energy
Directorate-General of Quality and Safety
Safety Division
Boulevard du Roi Albert II 16
1000 Bruxelles

Email: safety@economie.fgov.be

Approval of Conveyors

For safety reasons, the law requires conveyors to accompany and/or monitor the transport of explosive substances.

Road Transport

If the vehicle carries more than 300 kg net of explosive substances of A1 to A5 category or ammunition of B2 to B5 category containing more than 300 kg net of explosive or pyrotechnic substances, (or entertainment devices of C category, group a, containing more than 300 kg net of pyrotechnic substances,) or ammunition of B1 category containing more than 30 kg net of these same substances, it must be accompanied by two individuals aged at least 21, including the driver, one of whom must be a conveyor approved by the Explosives Department (article 107 of the Royal Decree of 23 September 1958).

Water Transport

If the ship or boat carries more than 400 kg of type A,1^st and2^nd category explosives, or a quantity of B category, 2^nd and3^rd category explosives, containing more than 400 kg of explosive substances, or more than 1,000 kg of other explosives, it must be supervised by an escort composed of a conveyor previously approved by the Explosives Department and two individuals aged at least 21 (article 132 of the Royal Decree of 23 September 1958).

Rail Transport

If the train carries more than 6,000 kg of gross mass, it must be supervised by an escort composed of two individuals aged at least 21, one of whom must be a conveyor previously approved by the Explosives Department (article 198 of the Royal Decree of 23 September 1958).

In addition, the conveyor carry a written authorization from their employer mentioning their approval.

To become an approved conveyor, you must submit a request to the Directorate-General of Quality and Safety via post or email:

FPS Economy, SMEs, Middle Classes and Energy
Directorate-General of Quality and Safety
Safety Division
Boulevard du Roi Albert II 16
1000 Bruxelles

Email: safety@economie.fgov.be

Certificate of Approval of a Vehicle for the Road Transport of  Category 1 Explosives (ADR certificate of approval)

Category 1 explosives are carried in EXII, EXIII or MEMU vehicles as defined in paragraph 9.1.1.2 of the Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR).

These vehicles must be approved by the competent authority of the country of registration in accordance with the ADR article 9.1.3.1.

For category 1 explosives, the competent authority for approval of the aforementioned vehicles is the Directorate-General Quality and Safety of the FPS Economy.

To obtain the approval of a category EXII, EXIII and MEMU vehicle, you must submit the request to the Directorate-General of Quality and Safety via post or email:

FPS Economy, SMEs, Middle Classes and Energy
Directorate-General of Quality and Safety
Safety Division
Boulevard du Roi Albert II 16
1000 Bruxelles

Email: safety@economie.fgov.be

Appeal Procedure for Annulment

You can appeal to the Council of State to have a decision annulled within 60 days of notification of the decision.

The request (request for annulment) must be signed and must contain the following elements:

• The name and address of each applicant,
• An expressly elected domicile in Belgium for all correspondence concerning the appeal,
• The decision whose annulment is requested,
• The name of the opposing party (the authority that issued the decision),
• A statement of facts
• A statement of "means" indicating the rules of law that have been breached and how.

You can send the request to the registry of the Council of State:

• By registered mail (rue de la Science 33, 1040 Brussels),
• Online (see for this purpose the "e-Procedure" section on the website of the Council of State).

If submitting via post, you must attach to the original dated and signed request three certified copies, plus one copy for each opposing party.