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In a joint statement issued tonight, the French nuclear safety authority (Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire, ASN), the Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) and the UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE), said: “Although the EPR design being developed for each country varies slightly, the issues we raised with the current instrumentation and control (I&C) system are broadly similar, our aim being to collectively obtain the highest levels of safety from the EPR.”
The safety authorities had all raised questions about the I&C system with STUK requesting further information in December 2008. The UK’s HSE brought up various points relating to the proposed configuration of the I&C system, while in October 2009 ASN sent a letter to Electricité de France (EDF) requesting additional information on the system.
Areva and EDF said they are committed to providing the requested answers by the end of the year. Areva is the manufacturer of the EPR, while EDF is building one at Flamanville in France.
In their joint statement the regulators said: “The licensees and Areva have agreed to make architectural changes to the initial EPR design which will be reviewed by the regulators.”
The joint statement added: “The issue is primarily around ensuring the adequacy of the safety systems (those used to maintain control of the plant if it goes outside normal conditions), and their independence from the control systems (those used to operate the plant under normal conditions).”
The statement said independence is important because if a safety system provides protection against the failure of a control system, then they should not fail together. It said the EPR design as originally proposed by the licensees and Areva does not comply with the independence principle because there is a very high degree of complex inter-connectivity between the control and safety systems.
“This is a good example of how independent regulators working closely together can promote a shared understanding and application of existing international standards, and promote the harmonisation of regulatory standards and the build of reactor designs with the highest levels of safety,” the joint statement said.
Areva said tonight that it welcomed the approach made by the safety authorities to introduce a global standardisation for its I&C model.
“This constant dialogue between operators, constructors and nuclear safety authorities is an integral part of the certification and construction processes for new reactors,” the company said.
“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 France, EDF is building the Flamanville-3 EPR in Normandy, while the Olkiluoto-3 EPR is under construction in Finland. In the UK, the EPR has been presented by EDF and Areva as a potential candidate for a programme of new-build. The design is undergoing generic design assessment in the UK.
– by John Shepherd
>>Related reports in the NucNet database (available to subscribers)
UK And French Regulators Plan ‘Joint Approach’ On EPR (News in Brief No. 42, 8 April 2008)
UK Regulators Publish EPR And AP1000 Quality Reports (News No. 64, 24 September 2009)
The NucNet database currently contains more than 14,000 reports published since 1991. To subscribe or ask for any further information email info@worldnuclear.org
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