Sunday, September 11 2005 17:33 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Mumbai: Advanced studies using probabilistic techniques carried out by the Nuclear Power Corporation India Limited (NPCIL) have reconfirmed the safety of Indian Nuclear Power Plants.

The NPCIL conducted two important studies involving multi-disciplinary experts with intimate knowledge of plant design, operation and Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA) techniques and are on par with studies carried out elsewhere, its executive director S N Ahmed said in a release here today (Sept 11, 2005).

The just concluded studies covered Level-1 PSA for Tarapur Atomic Power Station (TAPP-3&4), the first 540 MW Indian Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR), and Level-2 PSA study of two 220 MW Kakrapara Atomic Power Station (KAPS-1&2).

These studies reconfirm the safety of these reactors including their design features and operating procedures and practices, he said.

PAS, Probabilistic Safety Assessment is an advanced technique in safety evaluation of the nuclear power plants and it provides a useful, consistent and structured framework for the quantified assessment of nuclear safety.

This in-depth rigorous analysis is to look at the impact of design and operating practices of the plant on the overall safety of the plant in an integrated manner.

Risk informed decision-making based on PSA is now becoming the order of the day for the nuclear industry globally, Ahmed said adding, with the completion of these studies, NPCIL has enhanced the capability towards risk informed decision-making.

PSA Level-1 addresses the safety of the reactor. PSA Level-2 addresses the safety of the reactor and the containment taken together, he pointed out.

NPCIL, a public sector undertaking under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) presently has 14 nuclear power plants in operation with a total installed capacity of 2770 MW and is also constructing another eight units.

NPCIL plants have been amongst the top performing plants internationally and their safety record has been excellent. In 238 reactor years of accumulated operation, there has been no radiological accident, NPCIL claimed.

The results of the studies were discussed at a workshop held at NPCIL on Friday, Ahmed said.

Commenting on the studies, Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) chairman Dr Anil Kakodkar said the PSA tools should also be used for comparative studies of risks from various energy systems including effects on global weather changes arising from CO2 emissions.

NPCIL MD S K Jain emphasized the Corporation's commitment to use of advanced technologies and techniques for safety in all aspects of its activities right from sifting, design, operation and decommissioning.

Chairman of Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) S K Sharma called for the need for balanced safety decisions encompassing well established safety design principles of defence-in-depth to ether with insights from PSA.