ASN Report 2020

management and monitoring of the electrical installation inspections. Improvements are however necessary in the application of the outside contractor monitoring programme. Weaknesses were also observed in the lightning protection of Chinon A2. THE “NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE” FACILITIES Inter-regional fresh fuel warehouse Commissioned in 1978, the Chinon MIR is a facility for storing fresh fuel assemblies pending their utilisation in various EDF reactors. It constitutes BNI 99. Along with the Bugey MIR, it contributes to the management of flows of fuel assembly supplies for the reactors. The MIR was equipped with a new handling crane in 2019. In the context of the updated baseline requirements, authorised by ASN, nominal operation of the facility resumed in 2020 with the reception and storage of fresh fuel assemblies. An inspection confirmed the smooth running of the operations in the facility. RESEARCH FACILITIES UNDERGOING DECOMMISSIONING Irradiated materials facility The AMI which was declared and commissioned in 1964, is situated on the Chinon nuclear site and operated by EDF. This facility (BNI 94) has stopped operating and is waiting to be decommissioned. It was intended essentially for performing examinations and expert assessments on activated or contaminated materials from pressurised water reactors. The analysis and expert assessment activities were entirely transferred in 2015 to a new facility on the site, the Ceidre integrated laboratory (Lidec). ASN completed its examination of the decommissioning file in 2020 and issued its opinion on the draft Decommissioning Decree in early 2020. The AMI Decommissioning Decree 2020‑499 was published on 30 April 2020 and its entry into effect will mark the start of the facility decommissioning phase. With a view to decommissioning the facility, the AMI activities were essentially decommissioning preparation and monitoring operations. The main activity in 2020 was the continued treatment and removal of the legacy waste and various unused items of equipment. Thus all the legacy waste from the wells (other than the magnesian waste) has been characterised and packaged. Furthermore, there is no more liquid waste to treat. The legacy magnesian waste for its part should be packaged by early 2021. The large majority of the worksites were stopped frommid- March to the beginning of June 2020 on account of the health crisis. During this period, only the essential activities (the periodic inspections and tests in particular) were maintained. The non-essential activities were gradually resumed and returned to a normal level of activity in September 2020. ASN considers that the management of the support functions and of the electrical power supplies in particular, is satisfactory. Particular attention must nevertheless be paid to operation of the ventilation system and determining the causes of the failures encountered. As an example, improvements are required in the monitoring of the negative pressure values recorded and the eff iciency tests of the High-Eff iciency Particulate Air (“HEPA” ) filters. The licensee must moreover be stricter in its application of certain regulatory provisions, particular with regard to waste management or packaging. SAINT‑LAURENT‑DES‑EAUX SITE The Saint-Laurent-des-Eaux site, situated on the banks of the river Loire in the municipality of Saint‑Laurent‑Nouan in the Loir‑et‑Cher département , comprises various nuclear installations, some of them in operation and others under­ going decommissioning. The Saint‑Laurent‑des‑Eaux NPP comprises two operating reactors, B1 and B2, which were commissioned in 1980 and 1981 and constitute BNI 100. The site also features two old GCRs, A1 and A2, currently in the decommissioning phase, and two silos for storing the graphite sleeves from the operation of reactors A1 and A2. Saint-Laurent-des-Eaux nuclear power plant Reactors B1 and B2 in operation ASN considers that the performance of the Saint-Laurent- des-Eaux NPP with regard to nuclear safety and radiation protection is in line with its general assessment of the EDF plants. The environmental protection performance stands out positively and is considered satisfactory on the whole. With regard to nuclear safety, ASN observes that the site’s performance has been stable since 2018 despite putting in place a safety rigour plan. The origin of the deviations has nevertheless changed. Several events reveal deficiencies in the detection of deviations, compliance with the action to take or the reference documentation used for the activities. To give an example, in 2020 the Saint‑Laurent‑des‑Eaux NPP experienced a reactor trip with unwanted operation of a safeguard system, which revealed def iciencies in the preparation and performance of certain activities, although corrective actions have been put in place since then. ASN wishes to underline the good overall upkeep of the worksites and the apparently satisfactory condition of the inspected equipment. ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2020 55 REGIONAL OVERVIEWOF NUCLEAR SAFETY AND RADIATION PROTECTION CENTRE-VAL DE LOIRE