inspection programme. The meeting was followed by a visit to GE Hitachi, concerning the BWRX-300 reactor project, and a visit to the Darlington NPP in Ontario. ASN and the CCSN restated their commitment to continue their cooperation and their information exchanges. CHINA The bilateral meeting between ASN and its Chinese counterpart, the National Nuclear Safety Administration (NNSA) was held on 14 November 2023, in Beijing. The discussions notably concerned the stress corrosion affecting some of the French nuclear power reactors, radioactive waste management, recycling of very low level metallic waste and the SMR licensing process. In addition, a number of technical meetings were held on Operating Experience Feedback (OEF) of the Taishan NPP, which houses the world’s first two EPR type reactors to have been commissioned. These exchanges primarily aimed to examine to what extent Chinese OEF could be used in the current examination of the commissioning application for the Flamanville EPR. SOUTH KOREA A technical visit was organised around indoor presentations and site visits from 3 to 5 April 2023 by ASN’s Bordeaux regional division for a delegation from the South Korean Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC). The goal was to share ASN’s inspection methods for industrial small scale nuclear facilities utilising ionising radiation. These technical exchanges will continue during a forthcoming ASN visit to South Korea. UNITED ARAB EMIRATES On 14 September 2023, ASN and its counterpart in the Emirates, the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR) signed an extension of their cooperation agreement for a period of five years. SPAIN The bilateral meeting between ASN and its Spanish counterpart (Consejo de Seguridad Nuclear – CSN) was held on 18 October 2023 in Madrid. The discussions notably covered national and regulatory topical subjects in both countries, decommissioning of installations, remediation of soils contaminated by radioactive substances, analysis of seismic risks in NPPs and the radon risk. ASN and the CSN also decided during this meeting to set up a system of short-term personnel secondments. UNITED STATES The ASN Commission and the American Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) met in January 2023 at the NRC headquarters to discuss SMRs, the continued operation of NPPs, involvement of the public and stakeholders in decision-making and safety and radiation protection culture among the general public. This meeting was followed by a visit to the Vogtle site which is home to two AP1000 reactors and a visit to the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) in Washington on research subjects related to the continued operation of reactors and accidentresistant fuel. In July 2023, ASN took part in an international seminar organised by the NRC on prolonging the lifetime of reactors. In September 2023, an NRC Commissioner visited ASN and, along with the ASN Caen regional division, went to the Orano facilities at La Hague. In December 2023, the 13th bilateral meeting between ASN and the NRC, held at the ASN headquarters, covered SMRs and continued operation of the reactors. Finally, in September, ASN and the NRC renewed their cooperation and information exchange agreement. ISRAEL In September 2023, in the margins of the IAEA general conference, a meeting was held between ASN and its Israeli counterpart (Israel Atomic Energy Commission – IAEC). This was an opportunity to renew the cooperation and information exchange agreement between the two regulators. JAPAN A bilateral meeting was held on 17 April 2023 in Tokyo. It enabled ASN to hold discussions with its Japanese counterpart (Nuclear Regulation Authority – NRA) on subjects such as continued operation of the NPPs, SMRs and inspection programmes. Participation by the Japanese Ministry of Health, the authority responsible for regulation and radiation protection of patients, also allowed discussions on this subject. A visit to the Fukushima Daiichi site followed the meeting. In addition, a number of meetings and visits took place in France, including that by the Chairman of the NRA, with a visit organised to the Flamanville site, as well as technical meetings about the Fukushima Daiichi accident and inspection programmes. The visit by a delegation of NRA lawyers led to an unprecedented exchange on the litigious subjects being addressed by the safety regulators. This was followed by a visit to the Blayais site, focusing on natural external hazards. Technical exchanges on stress corrosion were also carried out remotely. LUXEMBOURG The Franco-Luxembourg joint Commission on nuclear safety held its 21st meeting on 12 June 2023 at the ASN headquarters in Montrouge. On this occasion, the Commission discussed recent developments in both countries in the fields of nuclear safety and radiation protection, including the 2022 results from the Cattenom NPP, stress corrosion phenomena, the fourth periodic safety review of the 1,300 MWe reactors, the new organisation for the transboundary alert system and preparedness for emergency situations. Meeting between Commissioners from ASN and the NRC (United States) – January 2023 Visit to the Orano facilities at La Hague by an American delegation – September 2023 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2023 201 • 06 • International relations 06 05 15 08 11 04 14 07 13 AP 03 10 02 09 12 01
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