ASN Report 2018

ASN authorised commissioning of the support unit in 2014. Enrichment of the uranium resulting from reprocessing, requiring prior authorisation from ASN, has never been implemented. • The Atlas facility – BNI 176 The purpose of the Atlas facility is: ∙ ∙ to carry out industrial physico-chemical and radio-chemical analyses; ∙ ∙ to monitor liquid and atmospheric discharges and monitor the environment of the Tricastin facilities. This laboratory meets the most recent safety requirements. The building chosen for the siting of Atlas is thus more robust to external hazards than the laboratory buildings it is replacing. ASN authorised the commissioning of Atlas on 7 March 2017. After validation of the start-up tests, Orano began operation of two of the three infrared analysis benches and UF 6 sub-sampling benches in 2018. In accordance with the commissioning license, Orano produced a summary of the start-up tests, a review of acquired operating experience and updated its baseline safety requirements in 2018. • The Tricastin uranium storage facility – BNI 178 Following the delicensing of part of the Pierrelatte DBNI by decision of the Prime Minister, BNI 178 –or the Tricastin uranium storage facility– was created. This facility groups the uranium storage facilities and the platform’s new emergency management premises. ASN registered this facility in December 2016. • The P35 facility – BNI 179 Following on from the delicensing process for the Pierrelatte DBNI by decision of the Prime Minister, BNI P179, known as “P35” was created. This facility comprises ten uranium storage buildings. ASN registered this facility in January 2018. 1.2  ̶  Fuel fabrication The fabrication of fuel for electricity generating reactors involves the transformation of UF 6 into uranium oxide powder. The pellets fabricated from this powder in the Framatome “FBFC” plant in Romans-sur-Isère (BNI 98) are placed in zirconium metal cladding to constitute the fuel rods, which are then grouped together to form fuel assemblies. The fuels used in experimental reactors are more varied and some of them for example use highly-enriched uranium in metal form. These fuels are fabricated in the Framatome plant at Romans-sur-Isère called Cerca (BNI 63). The MOX fuel, consisting of a mixture of depleted uranium and plutonium oxides, is fabricated in BNI 151 Melox, operated by Orano Cycle and located on the Marcoule nuclear site. 1.3  ̶  The back-end fuel cycle - reprocessing • Orano Cycle reprocessing plants in operation at La Hague The La Hague plants, intended for reprocessing of spent fuel assemblies from nuclear reactors, are operated by Orano Cycle. The various facilities of the UP3-A (BNI 116) and UP2-800 (BNI 117) plants and of the STE3 (BNI 118) Effluent Treatment Station were commissioned from 1986 (reception and storage of spent fuel assemblies) to 2002 (R4 plutonium reprocessing facility), with most of the process facilities being commissioned in 1989-1990. The Decrees of 10 January 2003 set the individual reprocessing capacity of each of the two plants at 1,000 tonnes per year, in terms of the quantities of uranium and plutonium contained in the fuel assemblies before burn-up (in the reactor) and limit the total capacity of the two plants to 1,700 tonnes per year. The limits and conditions for discharges and for water intake by the site are defined by two ASN resolutions of 22 December 2015 (ASN resolution 2015-DC-0535 and ASN resolution 2015-DC-0536). • Operations carried out in the plant The reprocessing plants comprise several industrial units, each of which performs a specific operation. There are thus the reception and storage installations for spent fuel, facilities for shearing and dissolving it, for chemical separation of fission products, uranium and plutonium, for purification of the uranium and plutonium and for treatment of effluents and conditioning of waste. When they arrive in the plants, the spent fuel assemblies in their transport casks are unloaded either under water in the spent fuel pool, or dry, in a leaktight, shielded cell. The assemblies are then stored in pools for cooling. Afterwards, the assemblies are sheared and dissolved in nitric acid to separate the pieces of metal cladding from the spent fuel. The pieces of cladding, which are insoluble in nitric acid, are removed from the dissolver, rinsed in acid and then water, and transferred to a compacting and drumming unit. The nitric acid solution comprising the dissolved radioactive substances is then processed in order to extract the uranium and plutonium and leave the fission products and other transuranic elements. After purification, the uranium is concentrated and stored in the form of uranyl nitrate UO 2 (NO 3 ) 2 . It is intended for conversion in the TU5 facility on the Tricastin site into a solid compound (U 3 O 8 ), called “reprocessed uranium”. After purification and concentration, the plutonium is precipitated by oxalic acid, dried, calcined into plutonium oxide, packaged in sealed containers and placed in storage. It is then intended for the fabrication of MOX fuels in the Orano Cycle plant in Marcoule (Melox). Tricastin site ex-Comurhex GB II TU5 and W ex-Socatri Uranium storage areas in Tricastin P35 Atlas Romans-sur-Isère plant FBFC Cerca Malvési site ex-Comurhex Marcoule site Melox La Hague plant UP3 UP2-800 STE3 Installations of the fuel cycle in operation or undergoing decommissioning ASN report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2018  321 11 – NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE INSTALLATIONS 11