5 The bilateral framework for ASN’s international relations ASN collaborates with about twenty foreign safety regulators under bilateral agreements. Most of these agreements are bilateral administrative arrangements, but they are sometimes part of broader Governmental agreements (as is the case with Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and Luxembourg). The countries with which ASN maintains particularly close relations are, on the one hand, neighbouring countries, especially those whose border is situated close to a French nuclear facility and, on the other, the major nuclear countries and the countries using French nuclear technologies. These relations enable strategic information to be exchanged. This is notably the case during high-level meetings, at which points of doctrine and topical subjects for each authority (organisational and regulatory changes, events, feedback, etc.) are covered. They are also an opportunity for exchanges of technical and operational information. Practices can in particular be compared in detail during topical workshops or inspection cross-observations, in order to highlight practices from which ASN can draw inspiration. Many topics were covered throughout the year by ASN and its counterparts, such as the new nuclear context, the reactors fourth periodic safety reviews, stress corrosion, decommissioning, radioactive waste management, the precautionary culture, modular reactors, management of emergency situations and the transformation of the regulators. 5.1 BILATERAL COOPERATION BETWEEN ASN AND ITS FOREIGN COUNTERPARTS SOUTH AFRICA In March 2023, for the purpose of technical exchanges between ASN and the South African National Nuclear Regulator (NNR), two inspectors from ASN’s Lyon regional division were welcomed at the NNR’s Cape Town regional division, located near the Koeberg NPP. The mission concerned the fourth ten-yearly outages, continued operation of the reactors, inspection and oversight practices for reactor outages, and steam generator replacement operations. A remote bilateral meeting was also held between the ASN and NNR managements and confirmed the principle of an equivalent mission at ASN’s Lyon regional division for NNR inspectors during the course of 2024. GERMANY The Franco-German Commission was created as an intergovernmental body and involves several competent authorities at both national and local levels. In addition to the Commission’s plenary meetings, two working groups meet regularly, one to address the safety of NPPs in border areas, the other the management of emergency situations. In 2023, the Commission met on 14 and 15 June and covered a number of topical subjects, including the situation of the NPPs located near the Franco-German border and updating of postaccident doctrine in France. On the occasion of the 57th meeting of the working group on NPP safety, an ASN delegation went to Germany in September and was able to visit the waste treatment and storage facilities at the Karlsruhe Technology Institute. In November, ASN also received German representatives as part of a working group focusing on preparedness for emergency situations, as well as a German inspector during a cross-inspection at the Cattenom NPP. BELGIUM The exchanges between ASN and its Belgian counterpart, the Federal Agency for Nuclear Regulation (Agence fédérale de contrôle nucléaire – AFCN), lead to national and local level cooperation actions, in particular with the border regional divisions of Lille and Châlons-en-Champagne. They are coordinated by the Franco-Belgian steering committee, which met at the ASN headquarters in Montrouge on 16 October 2023. The two delegations, consisting of representatives of the authorities and their respective technical support organisations, the Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN) and Bel V, notably discussed energy policy changes in both countries and their consequences on NPP operations. The stress corrosion phenomenon observed on the French reactors in 2022 was also discussed. ASN also presented the progress made by the inspections and repairs on the Chooz and Gravelines reactors, which are those closest to the Franco-Belgian border. Finally, the topic of the continued operation of the NPPs was extensively discussed. CANADA On 5 December 2023, an ASN delegation headed by ASN Commissioner Sylvie Cadet-Mercier, met a delegation from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (Commission canadienne de sûreté nucléaire – CCSN) headed by Ramzi Jammal, its interim Chairman, at the CCSN headquarters in Ottawa. This meeting covered the issues associated with France’s new energy policy, the extension of the operating life of the existing NPP fleet, the examination and assessment process implemented at the CCSN, safety culture and preparation of the CCSN’s Signing of cooperation agreements between ASN and its counterparts. From left to right: NRA (Japan), ONR (United Kingdom) and NNSA (China) 200 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2023 • 06 • International relations
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