ASN Report 2018

NOTABLE EVENTS 2018 In 2015, ASN asked EDF to conduct an overall review of the “Cycle Impact” file by 2016. This update of the “Cycle Impact” file comprises a number of innovations with respect to the previous approaches initiated in 1999 and 2006: •  The study period, which habitually covered ten years, was increased to fifteen years, in order to take account of the time actually observed in the nuclear industry for designing and building any new facilities identified as being necessary for implementation of the strategy. •  Radioactive substances transport contingencies were explicitly taken into account. • Nuclear reactor closures were studied for the period of time considered, in particular assuming stable electricity demand until 2025, to take account of the planning provisions included in the Energy Transition for Green Growth Act 2015-992 of 17 August 2015. •  The strategy for managing and storing spent fuels pending reprocessing or disposal was explained. Nuclear safety and radiation protection   Nuclear fuel cycle consistency Fuel cycle diagram Enriched uranium Spent MOX fuels 110 t. Plutonium Reprocessed uranium Fuel fabrication Enrichment 1 st conversion 2 d conversion Interim storage Spent MOX Interim storage Extraction of ore Interim storage pending final disposal MOX fabrication Fission products Technological waste Depleted uranium Nuclear reactor Flows expressed in tons / year 7,500 t. 940 t. 10 t. 1,000 t. 120 t. 1,000 t. 120 t. 1,000 t. 8,500 t. A SN monitors the overall consistency of the industrial choices made with regard to fuel management and which could have consequences for safety. In this context, ASN periodically asks EDF to submit a «Cycle Impact» file prepared jointly with the fuel cycle stakeholders and presenting the consequences – for each step of the nuclear fuel cycle – of EDF’s strategy for using the different types of fuel in its nuclear reactors. 18  ASN report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2018