ASN Report 2017

391 ASN report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2017 Chapter 13  - Nuclear fuel cycle installations control of fire risks will be the subject of particularly close scrutiny. In addition, the examination of the periodic safety review file for the UP2-800 plant will lead to ASN’s initial conclusions at the beginning of 2018 and to the examination of certain technical subjects by the Advisory Committee at the end of 2018. This examination is to continue in 2019. With regard to future changes to reprocessing in the La Hague facility, ASN attaches particular importance to two modifications: on the one hand, the project to reprocess special fuels, which will allow the reprocessing of several fuel assemblies which hitherto could not be reprocessed, thus pushing back the saturation of the storage pools and, on the other, the replacement of the R7 evaporator, for which the particularly corrosive solutions are currently concentrated in other equipment in the plant and are liable to damage it. With regard to the recovery and packaging of legacy waste, ASN considers that efforts must be continued (see chapter 16). Romans-sur-Isère site ASNwill regularly check compliance with the undertakings made by the licensee in its action plan and the requirements it issues following examination of the periodic safety reviews of the BNIs on the site. Areva will in particular be required to construct a new building, referred to as the “new uranium zone”, in order to continue to fabricate research fuel in accordance with current safety requirements. Tricastin site InDecember 2017, Areva NC submitted applications for a change in licensee in order to become the single licensee of the platform, which will allow a simplification of the chains of responsibility, which on the whole can only be beneficial for safety. ASN will continue to monitor the major reorganisations of the group and the reorganisation of the Tricastin platform to ensure that there is no impact on the safety of the various BNIs on the site. In 2018, ASN will begin to examine the BNI creation authorisation application comprising new uranium storage buildings on the site, as well as the application for commissioning of the Trident unit in the Socatri facility (see chapter 14). ASN will remain particularly attentive to the reorganisation of the site with regard to nuclear waste management, pending the commissioning of the Trident unit, construction of which started in 2017. Mélox plant ASN will continue to monitor compliance with the licensee’s undertakings and the requirements it issued following the periodic safety review of the facility in 2011, more particularly with regard to the fire risk and the monitoring of outside contractors. In addition, the changes to fuel management for power reactors requiring adaptation of the characteristics of the MOX fuel, will be a subject of close attention for ASN. Areva NC will effectively have to demonstrate that the changes to the substances used in the BNI have no impact on the safety of the facility and it will, if need be, submit the necessary modification application files. In addition, the licensee announced its intention to carry out experimental fabrication of new types of fuels for qualification for the Astrid project and could submit an application for modification of its operating baseline requirements accordingly. Cross-disciplinary aspects ASN will be continuing its review of several of the Areva Group’s BNIs, notably those of La Hague, but also of EDF’s inter-regional fuel stores (in Chinon and Bugey). ASN will continue to oversee the implementation of the additional safety measures stipulated following the stress tests at the end of 2014 and beginning of 2015. This more specifically concerns the implementation of a hardened safety core of material and human resources capable of dealing with emergency situations on an exceptional scale.