CSN Periodic safety reviews

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Periodic safety reviews

REVISIONES PERIODICAS SEGURIDAD

As set by the regulations of the Spanish Nuclear Safety Council (CSN), nuclear facilities are obliged to undertake a periodic safety review, at least once every 10 years. In recent years, the process for renewing the operating permits of nuclear power plants has also been requiring a periodic review of the safety of the applicant’s plant.

A periodic safety review is the process of conducting additional analyses and checks that complement the nuclear safety assessments that take place regularly in a nuclear power plant, providing a global and integrated vision of its various nuclear safety aspects.

After the review, the nuclear safety of the facility is assessed on the basis of the results on the subjects within its scope over a sufficiently long period of time. The scope of the periodic safety review also includes the assessment of programmes under way to improve safety in the facility or the establishment of new programmes, if necessary. One of the most important aspects of this process is the analysis of the updated regulations to check whether new requirements that may apply to the facility have been included. After assessing the results of the periodic safety review carried out by the facilities, the CSN sets additional safety requirements for the licensees if it considers this necessary.

The objectives of a Periodic Safety Review (PSR) include:

- Analysing the facility’s performance in various aspects of nuclear safety over a sufficiently long period of time to be able to identify trends.

- Checking the suitability of the system used to analyse the various aspects of nuclear safety in the facility, documented in the periodic reports.

- Identifying the possible existence of cumulative effects that could negatively affect the facility’s nuclear safety.

- Analysing the situation of the facility with regard to international regulations and the regulations of the project origin country.

- Analysing the situation of the facility in the light of technology progress that could have taken place over the time period covered by the review.