Alongside this, ASN has continued the verif ication of the equipment quality review which was requested in 2018 due to the serious shortcomings observed in EDF’s monitoring of its outside contractors. ASN ascertained at periodic meetings in 2021 that a programme of complementary verif ications was established and implemented. ASN also carried out two inspections on this subject, which found that the conditions of performance of these verifications appeared on the whole to be good. EDF must nevertheless provide additional proof of the adequacy of the programme carried out. In 2022, ASN will examine the results of this review and the conclusions EDF draws from it. Numerous systems, structures and components were shut down during the work carried out on the MSS’s in 2020. After reviewing the preservation doctrine def ined by EDF, ASN conducted several inspections in 2021 to check its implementation. These inspections conf irmed the quality of the coordination and the measures taken to monitor the preservation actions. EDF was however sometimes obliged to make adjustments to the initially def ined strategies. The inspections did not reveal any deviations linked to these adjustments, but EDF must be more attentive to the checks when bringing out of preservation. ASN also continued its inspection of the MSS weld repairs through two f ield inspection campaigns and one specif ic inspection of EDF, four inspections of the manufacturer Framatome and three inspections of the notif ied body mandated by ASN to monitor these activities. ASN considers that the various parties involved have set up an organisation and a system for monitoring the activities conducive to achieving, with confidence, a high standard of quality in the production of these welds. ASN will continue to monitor these welding activities in 2022 and will be attentive to ensuring that the resources and the organisation are adequate to carry out a larger volume of repairs at the same time. A large amount of work and examinations still have to be carried out before the reactor is commissioned (see chapter 10 of the full ASN Report), as well as preparation for future operation of the facility. Concerning this latter point, a follow-up mission to the suggestions and recommendations expressed during an Operational Safety Review Team (OSART) international audit mission conducted by IAEA experts in 2019 was carried out at the end of 2021. ASN will monitor the actions implemented by the site further to this review. With regard to labour inspection, apart from checking that the companies working on the site comply with the provisions of labour law, ASN has checked the measures taken by the licensee further to the occurrence of several workplace accidents. ASN notes that the safety organisation is progressing and seems to be generally appropriate with regard to the regulations. Nevertheless, in view of the numerous low-level events, ASN will be attentive to compliance with the safety rules in 2022 in the transfers of equipment and premises to the future licensee. Manche waste repository The Manche waste disposal facility (CSM), which entered service in 1969, was the f irst radioactive waste repository operated in France. 527,225 m3 of waste packages are emplaced in it. The last waste packages to enter this facility were accepted in July 1994. From the regulatory aspect, the CSM is in the decommissioning phase (operations prior to its closure) until the installation of the long-term cover is completed. An ASN resolution shall specify the date of closure of the repository (entry into monitoring and surveillance phase) and the minimum duration of the monitoring and surveillance phase. Examination of the periodic safety review guidance f ile had resulted in ASN formulating specif ic demands at the end of 2017, concerning the justif ication of the technical principles of deployment of the long-term cover, the CSM memory system and the updating of the impact study. In this context, ASN is currently examining the CSM periodic safety review report submitted by Andra in 2019. ASN performed a specific inspection on this subject in 2021, and notes that the review process was conducted satisfactorily by the licensee, as regards the organisational set-up, the methodology used, the resources allocated to the various studies and the quality of the documents submitted to ASN. Nevertheless, points requiring particular attention are noted, concerning the need to finalise the technical qualification of a spare geomembrane if it is necessary to perform one-off repairs, formalisation of the in-house check of documents and the level of precision of the periodic safety review follow-up action plan. With regard to operation of the facilities, ASN considers that the measures taken by the licensee to guarantee environmental monitoring were satisfactory. The licensee must nevertheless be more rigorous in the performance of its network maintenance operations. ABSTRACTS – ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2021 75 REGIONAL OVERVIEW OF NUCLEAR SAFETY AND RADIATION PROTECTION NORMANDIE
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