An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team of experts today completed a review of long term operational safety of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant (ANPP) in Armenia.

During the ten-day Safety Aspects of Long Term Operation (SALTO) mission that ended on 9 October, the team reviewed the plant’s preparedness, organization and programmes for safe long term operation (LTO), which built upon a previous SALTO mission held at the plant in 2018 and a follow-up mission held in 2021. The review mission was requested by the ANPP and focused on aspects essential to the safe LTO of ANPP Unit 2, which is a pressurized-water reactor that went into commercial operation in 1980. ANPP Unit 1 was permanently shut down in 1989. In October 2021, the Armenian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (ANRA) issued a permit for Unit 2 to operate until September 2026. ANPP has requested permission from ANRA to operate for an additional 10 years, until September 2036.

The mission was conducted by a ten-person team consisting of experts from Argentina, the Netherlands, Romania, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States, as well as two IAEA staff members and two observers from Hungary and the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO). During the review, the SALTO team held in-depth discussions with staff from the ANPP and conducted several site walkdowns.

The team noted the progress in measures taken by the operator to ensure safe LTO. “The plant has clearly made progress since previous missions and has done a lot to address the previous SALTO findings,” said team leader and IAEA Nuclear Safety Officer Bryce Lehman, who noted that many ageing management and LTO activities were in alignment with IAEA safety standards. “We encourage the plant to continue implementing the remaining activities for LTO and to address the review findings,” he added.

The team identified good performances that will be shared with the nuclear industry globally, including:

• Continuously improving organizational practices, adopting international best practices and experience from the first LTO period to improve the approach and documentation for the upcoming second LTO period;
• Conducting periodic reviews of the seismic qualification programme, considering the latest knowledge and international operating experience; and
• Implementing a comprehensive modernization process performed by the staff of the plant.

The team also provided suggestions and recommendations to further improve safe LTO, for example, the plant should:

• Update the existing plant programmes to fully address ageing management for the upcoming second LTO period.
• Complete the qualification programme for equipment in harsh environments and fully implement it for LTO.
• Effectively implement the ageing management programmes for civil structures.

The plant management expressed a determination to maintain the level of preparedness for safe LTO and to further cooperate with the IAEA in this field.

“We appreciate the IAEA's support in ageing management and preparation for our second LTO period,” said Artur Grigoryan, the ANPP Chief Engineer. “It is very important for us to get an external review of our ageing management activities. The competencies and experience of the IAEA team will help us identify areas for improvement. The results of this mission will help us improve our activities for safe LTO and further align our activities with IAEA safety standards.”

The team provided a draft report to the plant management and to the ANRA at the end of the mission. The plant management and ANRA will have an opportunity to make factual comments on the draft. A final report will be submitted to the plant management, ANRA and the Armenian Government within three months.

Background

General information about SALTO missions can be found on the IAEA Website. A SALTO peer review is a comprehensive safety review addressing strategy and key elements for the safe long term operation of nuclear power plants. They complement OSART missions, which are designed as a review of programmes and activities essential to operational safety. Neither SALTO nor OSART reviews are regulatory inspections, nor are they design reviews or substitutes for an exhaustive assessment of a plant's overall safety status.

LTO of nuclear power plants is defined as operation beyond an established time frame determined by the license term, the original plant design, relevant standards, or national regulations. As stated in IAEA safety standards, to maintain a plant’s fitness for service, consideration should be given to life limiting processes and features of systems, structures and components, as well as to reasonably practicable safety upgrades to enhance the safety of the plant.