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France’s nuclear regulator finds “a lack of surveillance” in the defective welding in EPR nuclear reactors

Le Monde 12th April 2018 , [Machine Translation] EPR Flamanville: the Nuclear Safety Authority
criticizes “a lack of surveillance” ASN President Pierre-Franck Chevet
describes the new anomalies discovered on third-generation reactor welds as
“serious”.
The President of the Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN),
Pierre-Franck Chevet, came back in harsh terms, Thursday, April 12 in the
Senate, on new weld defects unearthed Tuesday on the EPR Flamanville
(Channel). An anomaly that he considered “serious” before the Parliamentary
Office for evaluating scientific and technological choices, to which he
presented the annual report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation
protection in France .
He had already used the same qualifier in February,
about first “deviations” detected in the realization of certain welds
piping connecting the steam generators (four in the EPR) to the turbine.
Thirty-eight welds were involved. But, at that time, EDF was assured, these
were deviations from a “high quality” standard , more demanding than the
standard standards applied to nuclear pressure equipment, so that,
according to the electrician, these circuits remained ” able to carry out
their mission safely . “
The problem is actually more extensive than EDF
then heard . At the end of March, the company discovered, during the
“initial complete visit” prior to the commissioning of the third-generation
reactor, new “quality deviations” . And this time, not in relation to
increased safety requirements, but compared to the normal regulations for
this type of equipment.
http://www.lemonde.fr/planete/article/2018/04/12/epr-de-flamanville-l-autorite-de-surete-nucleaire-pointe-un-defaut-de-surveillance_5284559_3244.html

April 14, 2018 - Posted by | France, safety

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