National action plan based on BelNPP stress tests forwarded to government

The national action plan based on the results of the stress tests of the Belarusian nuclear power plant (BelNPP) and with due regard to the recommendations of the peer review conducted by Belarus and the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group (ENSREG) was submitted for scrutiny to the government on 1 February, BelTA learned from the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry (Gosatomnadzor).

“Following the stress tests of the Belarusian nuclear power plant and the peer review process, a national action plan was drafted to enhance the safety of the BelNPP above the requirements established by the law. The plan was agreed with interested government agencies and organizations and submitted for scrutiny to the government on 1 February,” Gosatomnadzor informed.

BelTA reported earlier that in 2016 Belarus voluntarily stress tested its nuclear power plant taking into account specifications of the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group. The national report on the results of the stress tests was forwarded to the European Commission and made available to the general public online in 2017. The main conclusion was that the Belarusian nuclear power plant is resilient to events of the kind that befell the Fukushima nuclear power plant in 2011. A group of experts representing nuclear and radiation safety authorities visited Belarus in March 2018 upon ENSREG’s authorization as part of the peer review process. The report on the peer review was approved by ENSREG on 2 July 2018 and was posted on the website of the organization.