NEWS |
round up
POLICY KOREA HYDRO & Nuclear Power (KHNP) and the Korea Nuclear Association (KNA) jointly organised and event at the Intercontinental Amstel Hotel in the Netherlands with the aim of introducing the business capabilities of the Korean nuclear industry to relevant Dutch organisations.
FINLAND-BASED FORTUM and US Westinghouse Electric Company have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to explore the possible development and deployment of new nuclear in Finland and Sweden. This is related to Fortum’s Nuclear Feasibility Study launched in 2022 to investigate the conditions for possible deployment of both small modular reactors and conventional large reactors.
JAPAN’S PARLIAMENT HAS passed a bill that will allow ageing nuclear reactors to continue operating beyond 60 years following approval by the Upper House. Reactors will now be able to operate beyond the 60-year limit because periods when they are shut down for safety inspections or court injunctions will in future be excluded from their service time calculation.
AN AGREEMENT HAS been signed by state-owned Polish utility Polskie Elektrownie Jadrowe (PEJ) with a consortium of Westinghouse and Bechtel, which is being set up to design and build a NPP in Pomerania. The agreement sets out the rules for cooperation between PEJ and the Westinghouse-Bechtel consortium. These rules will apply to subsequent commercial contracts for the construction of a nuclear power plant in Pomerania.
SAFETY AND SECURITY AN INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC Energy Agency Operational Safety Review Team (OSART) team of experts said Électricité de France has strengthened operational safety at France’s Belleville NPP and addressed the findings of the previous IAEA review in 2021. The mission was conducted at the request of the French government. Belleville NPP, located around 150 km south of Paris, comprises two 1,363 MWe reactors, which were connected to the grid in 1987 and 1988.
the plant “has experienced strong
earthquakes”, citing one last year that registered lower 6 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7. Although the possibility of the pressure vessel tilting or sinking cannot be ruled out, the company asserts the impact will be limited with no risk of radioactive material leaking.
However, NRA said it could not decide whether the assumptions underlying Tepco’s risk assessment are accurate as the extent of damage and condition of the structural materials are not yet fully understood. NRA also said it would be difficult to reinforce the pedestal because of high radiation levels inside the containment vessel. For this reason, the NRA called on the utility
to evaluate the impact of a possible release of radioactive material into the environment and consider steps to deal with such an emergency. NRA Chairman Shinsuke Yamanaka told a news conference: “It is Tepco’s responsibility to swiftly assess what risks could impact the surrounding environment and its residents.” Conditions surrounding the reactors are
only now finally being clarified. This has led to the discovery of additional problems that are already difficult to deal with, making the outlook of progress toward decommissioning the reactors even more uncertain, said Asahi Shimbun. “There is absolutely no room for complacency when it comes to the consequences of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. TEPCO must always remain vigilant to a worst-case scenario in tackling related challenges.”
International Nuclear regulator SMR collaboration Members of the International Nuclear Regulators’ Association (INRA) say they are committed to proactively collaborate on generic reactor design assessments and licensing and to support national regulatory reviews on small modular reactors (SMRs). INRA, established in 1997, is a collective of the heads of the nuclear regulatory authorities from Canada, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, the UK and the USA. Its stated goal is to share knowledge and provide support to enhance nuclear safety, security and radiological protection. IRNA’s joint statement notes that in the
context of “international emphasis on domestic energy security and decarbonisation in the context of climate change”, SMR designs are being considered by countries across the globe. These designs aim to enhance safety and security, potential pace of deployment, and relatively lower cost, they are increasingly the primary focus of several nations. “However, such technologies also bear risks and challenges that need to be addressed,” IRNA says. “INRA members recognise the potential
safety performance opportunities that SMR technologies could offer and the important role of regulators in ensuring that these
12 | July 2023 |
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technologies are deployed safely, securely and consistent with robust non-proliferation requirements.” The statement says: “INRA members whose
countries are pursuing new nuclear programmes are committed to proactively collaborate on generic reactor design assessments and licensing and support national regulatory reviews in (re)embarking nations with new nuclear ambitions. These INRA members will seek to establish bi-lateral and multi-lateral arrangements to enable the provision of advice and guidance and the sharing of regulatory evaluations in support of their national regulatory reviews, lifecycle expertise and resources.” To maximise the value of collaborative
reactor design evaluation countries wishing to adopt SMRs should “commit to specific SMR technologies on similar timeframes and for vendors to develop their safety analysis and reactor designs to a level suitable for regulatory assessment”. Those INRA members “commit to undertake risk informed, proportionate and well targeted evaluations, and to dedicate the resource required to deliver at pace when technology decisions are taken”. Standard reactor designs will facilitate efficient regulatory reviews, but “further work will be required to address local factors such as siting and environmental issues”. These “will remain the responsibility of the national regulatory body, alongside the ultimate decision on the acceptability for deployment of a reactor design in its sovereign state”. Pre- licencing assessment is not legally binding on the approval to construct. This “is a separate regulatory decision which must be finalised in a publicly transparent way”. INRA supports the IAEA’s Nuclear Harmonisation & Standards Initiative (NHSI) and its members “are active in the regulatory track of work”. They recognise the value of an international, coherent framework for information sharing, “while noting the potential challenges and practical hurdles facing timely pursuit of an international pre-licensing process”. However, INRA members “consider that independent, national regulatory reviews should not be replaced by an international approach”. In support of a more global approach to new
reactor evaluation, INRA members “consider regulatory collaboration through bi/multi- lateral agreements, with appropriate input from industry, the optimum way to maximise the efficiency of evaluations”. They emphasise “the crucial role and responsibility of national regulators to guarantee, through the licensing process and continued regulatory supervision, the highest standards of nuclear safety, security and non-proliferation when considering new designs such as SMRs and advanced nuclear technologies.” The statement concludes: “INRA members are
ready to support a collaborative approach for the regulatory assessments of SMR technologies in the most efficient and effective way.”
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