"One of the prerequisites for SMRs application is the availability of an appropriate regulatory infrastructure in the country and the readiness of the regulatory authority to license new technologies," the SSTC NRS reported on its website.
According to it, Oleksiy Dybach, Director of the separate branch of the SSTC NRS – Centre "INTENSA", presented a report on the development of the regulatory framework for prospective SMR licensing in Ukraine at the International Conference on Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and their Applications, which was held in late October in Vienna at the IAEA Headquarters.
This was the first time the IAEA held a conference of this scale on SMRs.
The conference was attended by representatives of SMR technology developers – NuScale, Westinghouse and Holtec, as well as Korea's KHNP, investment companies, policymakers, regulators, designers, operators, scientific and technical support organisations, research institutions and educational institutions. The purpose of this conference was to provide an international forum to discuss the progress and opportunities, challenges and enabling conditions for the accelerated development and safe and secure deployment of SMRs among all possible stakeholders for SMRs, the IAEA noted.
The conference paid special attention to the prospects of using SMR to meet the growing electricity needs in the IT sector, as well as heat supply to household consumers, metallurgical and chemical industries.
O. Dybach emphasised in his report that the SSTC NRS, as a scientific and technical support organisation of the regulatory body, is working to expand its expert capabilities to ensure further assessment of SMRs safety and security.
As reported, Ukraine and the United States have announced the launch of three new projects in the field of SMRs as part of the agreements reached by the two countries on the sidelines of the COP29 climate conference in Baku. The partnership will be implemented within the framework of the Foundational Infrastructure for the Responsible Use of Small Modular Reactor Technology (FIRST) programme.
