The Georges Besse II ultra-centrifuge enrichment plant – BNI 168 BNI 168, called “GB II”, for which creation was authorised in 2007, is a plant enriching uranium by means of gas ultracentrifugation. This process involves injecting UF6 into a cylindrical vessel rotating at very high speed. Under the effect of the centrifugal force, the heavier molecules (containing uranium-238) are separated from the lighter ones (containing uranium-235). By combining several centrifuges, creating a cascade, it is then possible to recover a stream of uranium enriched with fissile 235 isotope and a depleted stream. The GB II plant comprises two enrichment units (South and North units) and a support unit, REC II. On 19 June 2023, Orano send the Minister in charge of nuclear safety a substantial modification authorisation application, with the aim of increasing the nominal production capacity of the GB II plant by 30%. Enrichment of the uranium resulting from reprocessing, which would require prior authorisation from ASN, is not currently carried out in this plant. The Atlas facility – BNI 176 The purpose of the Atlas facility is: ∙ to carry out industrial physico-chemical and radio-chemical analyses; ∙ to monitor liquid and atmospheric discharges and monitor the environment of the Tricastin facilities. The Atlas facility, commissioned in 2017, meets the most recent safety requirements. The Tricastin uranium storage facility – BNI 178 Following the delicensing of part of the Pierrelatte DBNI by decision of the Prime Minister, BNI 178 – or the Tricastin uranium storage facility – was created. This facility groups the uranium storage facilities and the platform’s new emergency management premises. ASN registered this facility in December 2016. The P35 facility – BNI 179 Following on from the delicensing process for the Pierrelatte DBNI by decision of the Prime Minister, BNI 179, known as “P35” was created. This facility comprises ten uranium storage buildings. ASN registered this facility in January 2018. The FLEUR facility – BNI 180 Decree 2022-3091 of 18 March 2022 authorises the Orano ChimieEnrichissement company to create a storage BNI called “Local Supply of Reprocessed Uranium Storage” (FLEUR acronym in French), intended for the storage of containers of depleted uranium mainly produced by reprocessing of spent fuels. It currently comprises two buildings and could eventually comprise up to four. The IARU facility (formerly Socatri) – BNI 138 The facility primarily carries out repair, decontamination and dismantling of industrial or nuclear equipment, radioactive and industrial liquid effluent treatment and reprocessing and conditioning of radioactive waste. 1.2 FUEL FABRICATION The fabrication of fuel for electricity generating reactors involves the transformation of UF6 into uranium oxide powder. The pellets fabricated from this powder in the Framatome “FBFC” plant in Romans-sur-Isère are placed in zirconium metal cladding to constitute the fuel rods, which are then grouped together to form the fuel assemblies. The fuels used in the experimental reactors are more varied and, for example, some of them use highly-enriched uranium in metal form. These fuels are fabricated in the Framatome plant at Romans-sur-Isère usually called “Cerca”. The FBFC and Cerca plants were combined in a single BNI (63‑U), by a Decree of 23 December 2021. The MOX fuel is fabricated in BNI 151 Melox, operated by Orano and located on the Marcoule nuclear site, by mixing uranium oxide and plutonium oxide powder and sintering it into pellets, which are then placed in cladding and assemblies of the same geometry as those produced by FBFC. 1.3 THE BACK-END “FUEL CYCLE” – REPROCESSING The Orano reprocessing plants in operation at La Hague The La Hague plants, intended for reprocessing of spent fuel assemblies from nuclear reactors, are operated by Orano. The various facilities of the plants reprocessing irradiated fuel elements from ordinary water nuclear reactors (UP3-A – BNI 116 and UP2-800 – BNI 117) and of the Effluent Treatment Station (STE3 – BNI 118) were commissioned from 1986 (reception and storage of spent fuel assemblies) to 2002 (R4 plutonium reprocessing facility), with most of the process facilities being commissioned in 1989-1990. The Decrees of 10 January 2003 set the individual reprocessing capacity of each of the two plants at 1,000 tonnes per year (t/year), in terms of the quantities of uranium and plutonium contained in the fuel assemblies before burn-up (in the reactor), and limit the total capacity of the two plants to 1,700 t/year. The limits and conditions for water discharges and intake defined in 2015, were updated by two ASN resolutions of 16 June 2022 (resolution 2022‑DC-0724 and resolution 2022-DC-0725). The resolutions notably modify the maximum monthly value of the activity concentration of the noble gases, including krypton-85, and regulate the limits and procedures for the discharge at sea of eleven chemical substances, detected by the licensee in small quantities in the discharges during a regulatory conformity evaluation. Tricastin site Philippe Coste plant GB II TU5 and W IARU (formerly Socatri) Tricastin uranium-bearing facilities P35 Atlas Romans-sur-Isère plant FBFC Cerca Malvési site formerly Comurhex Marcoule site Melox La Hague facility UP3-A UP2-800 STE3 The “fuel cycle” facilities in service ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2023 333 • 12 • “Nuclear fuel cycle” facilities 12 05 15 08 11 04 14 06 07 13 AP 03 10 02 09 01
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