CEA Cadarache OPERATION AND DESCRIPTION ▼ CHALLENGE ▼ NEXT KEY STEPS ▼ ASN OBSERVATIONS ▼ BNI 22 Decommissioning of Pégase facility • Safety of storage pool with respect to a seismic hazard • Limitation of dependency of Cascad in terms of active institutional controls • Retrieval and packaging of araldite-encapsulated fuels(*) from the Pégase facility (planned to start in 2025(**)) • Decoupling of Pégase and Cascad facilities (planned from 2030 to 2035) • The end of decommissioning is scheduled for 2065(**). • In 2022, ASN authorised the “removal of aralditeencapsulated fuels from storage” (DECAP) process allowing reconditioning of the araldite-encapsulated cans for storage in the Cascad facility. This process began in April 2024. • BNI 22 comprises two facilities: the Pégase facility being decommissioned and the Cascad facility in operation. The decoupling work is planned as of 2030. BNI 37B Retrieval and packaging of all the residues in the facility’s tanks Safety of the pits containing waste with respect to seismic and fire hazards • Construction of a new building and commissioning of an entirely automated retrieval process requiring substantial preliminary operations (scheduled for 2052) • Definition of the definitive packaging process The facility decommissioning file is currently being examined; its time frame targets are set for the very distant future, beyond 2100 for completion of decommissioning; these will be examined with particular attention. * Araldite is a polyepoxide formed by bringing an epoxy resin into contact with a polymerising agent. The presence of araldite in the fuel cans creates a risk of producing gas, particularly hydrogen, which can cause overpressure or an explosion. ** Deadline as presented in the last file subject to public inquiry or the deadline stipulated by ASN. Observatory of waste retrieval and packaging and decommissioning projects Given the large number of their facilities in final shutdown status or undergoing decommissioning, CEA, Orano and EDF must carry out various Waste Retrieval and Packaging (WRP) and decommissioning projects simultaneously. Some of these projects present particular difficulties due to the extent of their radiological inventory or their unprecedented nature. In effect, progressing with these projects sometimes requires the devising of specific processes based on technologies that are not yet tried and tested or the establishing of management routes for radioactive waste for which there is as yet no disposal solution. The scale of these projects and the particular difficulties they can present has led the CEA and Orano to prioritise those presenting the greatest importance, applying a strategy approved by ASN, and to define the first steps necessary for them to progress under the oversight of ASN, even when their completion time frame is very distant. In such cases the licensee commits to intermediate completion deadlines targeting major steps in the progress of the project and governing its successful execution (identification of critical and sub-critical paths) and the meeting of deadlines. These milestones, which are recognised by ASN, are set for a time frame of about five years to guarantee correct performance of the operations within the set deadline. The following table gives a summarized presentation of the next deadlines for the main decommissioning and WRP projects, along with the difficulties encountered in their implementation. 362 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2024
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