Occitanie REGION The Bordeaux and Marseille divisions jointly regulate nuclear safety, radiation protection and the transport of radioactive substances in the 13 départements of the Occitanie region. In 2022, ASN carried out 125 inspections in the Occitanie region, comprising 55 inspections in BNIs, 56 in small-scale nuclear activities, 11 in the transport of radioactive substances and 3 concerning ASN‑approved organisations and laboratories. ASN also carried out 15 days of labour inspection at the Golfech NPP. During 2022, four significant events rated level 1 on the INES scale were reported by the licensees of the nuclear installations in Occitanie. In small-scale nuclear activities, 3 significant radiation protection events rated level 1 on the INES scale were reported to ASN (2 in the industrial sector and 1 in the medical sector). One significant event in the medical field rated level 2 on the ASN‑SFRO scale was reported to ASN. In the context of their oversight duties, the ASN inspectors issued one violation report. One medical centre was moreover summoned in order to raise senior management’s awareness of the issues of occupational and patient radiation protection. ASN temporarily modified the requirements regulating thermal discharges from the Golfech NPP during the heat waves of summer 2022 (see “Notable events” in the introduction to this report). Golfech nuclear power plant The Golfech NPP operated by EDF is located in the Tarn‑et‑Garonne département, 40 km west of Montauban. This NPP comprises two 1,300 MWe PWRs, commissioned in 1990 and 1993. Reactors 1 and 2 constitute BNIs 135 and 142 respectively. ASN considers that the performance of the Golfech NPP with regard to nuclear safety and environmental protection is below ASN’s general assessment of the EDF plants. The radiation protection performance is in line with the general assessment. With regard to nuclear safety, ASN considers that deployment of the Safety rigour plan since 2019 demonstrates senior management’s commitment to improving the site’s nuclear safety performance. Nevertheless, the actions and efforts undertaken in this context have not yet produced sufficiently visible results on the performance levels observed during inspections or on the Golfech NPP indicators. The shortcomings in the area of operational control already identified in previous years persist in 2022 despite some progress: deficiencies in skills, in communication between departments, in compliance with procedures and recording of activities. ASN considers that in 2023 the licensee must improve operating rigour by enhancing operator skills and compliance with procedures. With regard to maintenance, the marking event of 2022 was the ten-yearly outage of reactor 1. The work undertaken by the site to improve the quality of maintenance has resulted in visible progress in this area. ASN notes more particularly improvements in the identification and addressing of deviations, in the consolidation of technical controls and in the consideration of the positions of the independent safety organisation. ASN nevertheless considers that the site must increase its efforts to improve assimilation of the safety risks prior to work interventions. ASN considers that the site’s occupational radiation protection performance is stable with respect to 2021. ASN notes the strong involvement of the members of the workers’ radiation protection skills centre in the training course and the increase in the monitoring of radiation protection contractors. Improvements are nevertheless expected in the control of the procedures for accessing limited stay (orange) areas and in industrial radiography activities. In the area of environmental protection, ASN considers that the performance of the Golfech NPP deteriorated in 2022. The year was marked by a relatively large number of events. Improvements in the management of the containment of non-radioactive liquid substances are expected in 2023. Concerning labour inspection, ASN considers that there is a deterioration in worker safety results. Compliance with the requirements of the Labour Code must be improved, particular regarding work at height and handling and lifting operations. The ASN labour inspectorate considers that coordination of the risks associated with the interface between different activities must be improved, as must the quality of activity preparation and risk analyses. It also notes the existence of design faults in certain electrical installations, witnessed by an inspection organisation. 84 ABSTRACTS – ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2022
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