4 Regulation and oversight of the safety of the Flamanville EPR reactor The EPR is a PWR using a design that contains a number of changes by comparison with that of the reactors currently in operation in France. It meets reinforced safety objectives: reduction in the number of significant events, limitation of discharges, reduced volume and activity of waste, reduced individual and collective doses received by the workers (in normal operation and incident situations), reduced overall frequency of core melt, taking account of all types of failures and hazards and reduced radiological consequences of any accidents. In May 2006, EDF submitted a creation authorisation application to the Ministers responsible for nuclear safety and for radiation protection, for an EPR type reactor with a power of 1,650 MWe on the Flamanville site, which was already home to two 1,300 MWe reactors. The Government authorised its creation through Decree 2007‑534 of 10 April 2007, after a favourable opinion issued by ASN following the examination process. This Decree was modified in 2017 and in 2020, to extend the time allowed for commissioning of the reactor. After the issue of this DAC and the building permit, construction of the Flamanville EPR reactor began in September 2007. The first concrete was poured for the nuclear island buildings in December 2007. Fuel loading is scheduled for the first half of 2024. 4.1 EXAMINATION OF THE AUTHORISATION APPLICATIONS Examination of the commissioning authorisation application In March 2015, EDF sent ASN a first commissioning authorisation application for the installation, containing all the items required by the regulations. This application was renewed in June 2021 and the file was supplemented and updated. During the review, ASN obtained the opinion of the GPR on several topics and a session was devoted to examining the safety case. ASN’s review also takes account of the results of the tests performed on the site and OEF from EPR reactors commissioned abroad. For this purpose, ASN maintained regular relations with the Finnish, Chinese and British safety regulators in order to benefit from their experience of start-up tests, preparation for operation and the actual working of the EPR reactors. The commissioning authorisation application file underwent a public consultation. 4.2 CONSTRUCTION, START-UP TESTS AND PREPARATION FOR OPERATION ASN is faced with numerous challenges concerning oversight of the construction, start-up tests and preparation for operation of the Flamanville EPR reactor. These are: ∙ in a manner proportionate to the issues, checking the quality of equipment manufacturing and installation construction, in order to be able to issue a position statement on the safety of the installation; ∙ ensuring that the start-up tests programme is satisfactory, that the tests are correctly performed and that the required results are obtained; ∙ ensuring that the various players draw on the OEF from the construction and start-up test phase, including the upstream phases (supplier selection and monitoring, construction, procurements, etc.), in order to improve the management of these safety-important activities; ∙ ensuring that the licensee takes the necessary steps so that the teams in charge of operating the installation after commissioning are well-prepared. To do this, ASN has set binding requirements regarding the design, construction and start-up tests for the Flamanville EPR reactor and for operation of the existing two Flamanville 1 and 2 reactors close to the construction site. As this is a nuclear power reactor, ASN is also responsible for labour inspection on the construction site. Lastly, ASN ensures oversight of the manufacture of the NPE that will be part of the nuclear steam supply system. In 2023, EDF continued with work to complete the installation, to make modifications to certain equipment and to draw up the various documents needed for operation. EDF also continued to analyse and correct anomalies. It in particular completed the repairs of the secondary systems welds. EDF implemented a programme of additional inspections as part of the quality review requested by ASN owing to significant shortcomings observed in the monitoring of its contractors. Finally, EDF also continued to carry out the reactor start-up test programme and, at the end of 2023, completed the hot requalification phase of the equipment prior to reactor commissioning. Since December 2023, the site has entered a reactor fuel loading preparation phase. 4.3 ASSESSMENT OF DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, START-UP TESTS AND PREPARATION FOR OPERATION OF THE FLAMANVILLE EPR REACTOR The examinations in progress ASN considers that the design of the Flamanville EPR reactor should be able to achieve the ambitious safety objectives set for the third-generation reactors. It should also lead to a significant reduction in the probability of core melt and radioactive releases in the event of an accident, by comparison with the secondgeneration reactors. The EPR reactor design in particular includes systems for managing severe accidents and is able to withstand extreme external hazards. This design only required very minor changes to take account of the lessons learned from the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi NPP. In 2023, EDF continued with the examinations linked to the commissioning authorisation application and reached a favourable conclusion on several high-stakes technical subjects. This is in particular the case with the design of the primary system safety valves, the performance of the containment internal water tank filtration system, and incorporation of the lessons learned from the commissioning of the first EPR reactors abroad, in particular the various anomalies found on the cores of the EPR reactors in Taishan (China), including the fuel clad perforations observed in 2021. The latest examinations in progress will be able to take account of the results of the overall requalification tests in order to check that the reactor as-built and operated complies with its baseline safety requirements. ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2023 317 • 10 • The EDF Nuclear Power Plants 10 05 15 08 11 04 14 06 07 13 AP 03 02 09 12 01
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