An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA Operational Safety Review Team (OSART)) team of experts has reviewed operational safety at units 4&6 of Russia’s Novovoronezh NPP. The team was composed of seven experts from Belarus, Brazil, China, Iran and South Africa, as well as four IAEA staff members and an observer from Russia. An earlier OSART mission reviewed unit 5 in 2015.

The Novovoronezh NPP in the Voronezh region is owned Rosatom and operated by Novovoronezh NPP, a subsidiary of nuclear utility Rosenergoatom. The plant consists of seven units. Units 1-3 are permanently shut down and under decommissioning. Units 4-7 – all VVER pressurised water reactors – are operating. Units 4 is VVER-V179 (417 MWe) and unit 5 a VVER-187 (1,000 MWe). Units 6&7 are VVER-392M reactors (1180 MWe).

The team reviewed operating practices in units 4&6 in the areas of leadership and management for safety, training and qualification, operations, maintenance, technical support, radiation protection, chemistry and accident management. This included reviewing documents on it’s the plant’s main technical features, staff organisation and responsibilities, and its operational programmes, procedures and performance prior to the mission. During the mission, the team observed the plant in operation, examined indicators of its performance and held in-depth discussions with plant personnel.

The OSART team observed that the staff at the plant are knowledgeable and professional and are committed to improving operational safety and reliability. The team identified one good practice to be shared with the nuclear industry globally. This was that the main control room operators have access to an electronic display for real-time indication of hydrogen ignition risk inside the containment building in the case of a severe accident.

The mission also provided some suggestions to further improve safety. The plant should consider enhancing:

  • The consistent use of tools to minimise human error.
  • The quality of maintenance activities.
  • The arrangements for the monitoring and reporting of equipment condition and material deficiencies to ensure that any degradation is identified and reported.

“We are grateful to the international experts of the IAEA for conducting a comprehensive inspection at two power units of the Novovoronezh NPP – unit 4 and unit 6. This is a reputable team with over 282-years combined operational experience in the nuclear power industry. According to the mission results, the plant received suggestions to enhance further the operational safety performance of Units 4 and 6,” said Plant Director Vladimir Povarov. “The mission confirmed that there was good alignment between the plant practices and the requirements in the IAEA standards.”

The team provided a draft report of the mission to the plant management. They will have the opportunity to make factual comments on the draft. These comments will be reviewed by the IAEA, and the final report will be submitted to the Government within three months.