Reactor oversight provides regulatory bodies the ability to verify that licensees operate facilities safely and give safety the highest priority. In response to the growing need to share experiences in this field, the NEA Working Group on Reactor Oversight (WGRO) organised its first International Nuclear Reactor Oversight Workshop (INROW) in Fukui, Japan, on 11–15 November 2024. Hosted by the Japanese Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA), the workshop consisted of two sessions: Session 1 (days 1-3) provided a forum for regulatory bodies and technical support organisations to exchange information on regulatory oversight activities; Session 2 (days 4-5) focused on benchmarking Japan's reactor oversight process (ROP) activities and exploring expectations for regulatory inspections with participants from licensees, local government and academia.
NEA Director-General William D. Magwood, IV addresses the participants of the First International Nuclear Reactor Oversight Workshop.
For Session 1, 52 international experts from 18 countries discussed three topics: Oversight frameworks regarding a licensee’s cross-cutting issues (CCIs), inspection of a licensee’s readiness for external events that could result in a station blackout, and innovative approaches to regulatory oversight. Discussions highlighted the importance of addressing a situation possibly causing CCIs at an early stage, systematic data gathering, structured implementation of oversight, inspector training, and acknowledging challenges in constructive dialogue between regulatory bodies and licensees concerning the human and cultural aspects of the organisations. The participants also addressed the ways to inspect and verify a licensee’s ability to respond to and mitigate the consequences of external events as well as the need to establish a sustained culture of innovation.
Part of Session 2 was dedicated to a benchmark inspection at Ooi Nuclear Power Station, where the formal interactions between the NRA’s onsite inspectors and licensee staffs were observed by international regulatory experts from the WGRO. The benchmark inspection team then held a panel session where they shared observations. This led to a discussion on the traits of an effective inspector, which include having a respectful attitude, open communication and humility.
Benchmark inspection at Ooi Nuclear Power Station as part of the First International Nuclear Reactor Oversight Workshop.
Session 2 continued with remarks from NEA Director-General William D. Magwood, IV and the NRA Commissioner Tomoyuki Sugiyama. Director-General Magwood highlighted the difference in roles and responsibilities between operator and regulator, noting, “a regulator should not take over the operator’s responsibility to make a plant safe, but observe and make sure that safety is maintained.”
Ms Hiroko Kondo from the Nuclear Safety Division of Atomic Energy Society of Japan then delivered a presentation in which she outlined the process of transferring and adapting US ROP to the Japanese cultural and regulatory environment and pointed out key challenges to be addressed.
The five-day workshop ended with a discussion led by Dr Akihiro Yamamoto of the Fukui Prefecture and Mr Taku Sato of the Atomic Energy Association (ATENA). The exchanges covered a variety of points such as mutual trust, effective communication, risk-informed decision making, continuous improvement, and long-term thinking.
The NEA will publish a summary of the workshop proceedings, which will include conclusions and recommendations for the NRA and international members.
