Communication from nuclear safety authorities
- By April Murelio -
With regard to the respective I&C (instrumentation and control) certifications for the EPR reactor in Finland, the United Kingdom and France, the three nuclear safety authorities STUK, HSE and ASN have raised common questions.
This constant dialog between operators, constructors and nuclear safety authorities is an integral part of the certification and construction processes for new reactors. The safety of the EPR reactor has not been called into question and AREVA is currently working with the regulators in each country to make the necessary adaptations to meet local standards.
In December 2008, the Finnish nuclear safety authority (STUK) requested further information on the I&C of the EPR and the documentation issued. The AREVA/Siemens consortium met these requests, providing all further general information which had, furthermore, been validated by the customer, TVO.
In the UK, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) brought up various points relating to the proposed configuration of the I&C system. AREVA and EDF are working together to adapt it to meet local requirements. The British regulators, EDF and AREVA are confident that they will find a solution.
On October 15, 2009, the French nuclear safety authority (ASN) sent a letter to EDF requesting additional information on the I&C system. AREVA and EDF are committed to providing the requested answers by year-end. The EPR reactor is currently the most powerful reactor in the world and meets the highest safety standards. EPR reactors are currently being built in Finland, France and China and the certification process is underway in the U.S. AREVA is working closely with the authorities in each country to determine how its model can respond to various local issues.
AREVA guarantees the safety of its reactor and welcomes the approach made by the safety authorities to introduce a global standardization for its I&C model.