These exchanges led to a report, the conclusions of which notably indicate that France’s experience with consultation of the public and the stakeholders is extensive and could be transposed to Spain to help CSN draw up recommendations via a future guide on consultation measures regarding disposal facilities in this country. The ASN Bordeaux regional division hosted a technical visit by CSN inspectors from 16 to 18 October 2024. Discussions concerned the regulation and oversight of industrial radiography activities. The Spanish delegation observed an unannounced inspection of a radiography worksite and visited a fixed facility. UNITED STATES In January 2024, a Commissioner from the NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Commission) met the ASN Commission in Montrouge to discuss the French approach to regulation of the “fuel cycle” and then, with the ASN Caen regional division, visited the Orano facilities at La Hague, as well as the EPR construction site in Flamanville. In February 2024, ASN took part in an international seminar organised by NRC on Operating Experience Feedback (OEF) regarding the stress corrosion phenomenon affecting reactor piping. FINLAND ASN and the Finnish nuclear safety regulator (Säteilyturvakeskus – STUK) met in Montrouge from 2 to 4 April 2024. During this meeting, ASN and STUK discussed a large number of subjects of common interest, such as the disposal of radio- active waste, the challenges raised by the emergence of innovative small modular reactor projects, EPR type reactors, and management of the ageing of the fleet of existing NPPs. Following technical discussions, a visit to Andra’s Meuse/HauteMarne centre was organised. INDIA An ASN delegation headed by its Chairman went to Mumbai from 5 to 7 March 2024 to meet its Indian counterpart, the AERB (Atomic Energy Regulatory Board). This meeting was organised as part of the cooperation agreement that has linked the two safety regulators for nearly 25 years now. The technical discussions in particular covered the service life extension of the NPPs, safety improvements to the reactors in service, emergency preparedness, the approaches adopted by the safety regulators to examine and evaluate new reactor technologies, notably SMRs. The AERB is also one of the rare nuclear safety regulators in the world to have its own in-house nuclear safety and radiation protection research institute, and a specific session was devoted to this topic. JAPAN The annual bilateral meeting with the Japanese Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) was held from 19 to 21 November 2024 at the ASN headquarters. The subjects covered notably concerned the creation of the Authority for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection (ASNR), the regulation of the recycling of very low-level (VLL) metal waste, the stress corrosion phenomenon, cooperation between the two regulators in the field of inspection, monitoring of the digital technologies used in instrumentation and control systems, management of obsolescence during the periodic safety reviews, and the safety improvements made to mitigate the consequences of a severe accident. The highly fruitful exchanges identified several cooperation actions for the coming year. The meeting was also followed by a visit to the Flamanville NPP, in the presence of ASN’s Caen regional division. The exchanges on inspection practices resumed in 2024, with the visit to Japan by a team of inspectors from ASN’s Lyon regional division, which led to technical meetings on service life extension, the decommissioning of sodium fast reactors and preparedness for emergency situations, as well as the observation of Japanese practices in the regulation and oversight of the safety of nuclear sites. LUXEMBOURG The Franco-Luxembourg joint commission on nuclear safety held its 22nd meeting on 10 June 2024 in Luxembourg. On this occasion, the Commission discussed recent developments in both countries in the fields of nuclear safety and radiation protection, including the 2023 results from the Cattenom NPP, the fourth periodic safety review of the 1,300 MWe reactors, the new organisation for the transboundary alert system and preparedness for emergency situations. NETHERLANDS The second bilateral meeting between the Dutch nuclear safety regulator (Autoriteit Nucleaire Veiligheid en Stralingsbescherming – ANVS) and ASN was held in The Hague on 16 December 2024. The meeting was an opportunity to discuss topical subjects in both countries, changes to French and Dutch policies and programmes, new reactor construction projects in France and the Netherlands and the plans for a joint evaluation of the Thorizon SMR project. UNITED KINGDOM In February 2024, the ONR organised the first technical meeting on climate change in London, with ASN (France), ANVS (Netherlands) and AFCN (Belgium). Bilateral meeting between representatives of AERB (India) and ASN – March 2024 Visit to the Flamanville EPR by ASN representatives and Commissioner Caputo from the NRC (United States) – January 2024 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2024 205 International relations 06 01 02 03 04 05 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 AP
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