Belarus continues sharing nuclear safety information with EU

08.01.2024

MINSK, 8 January (BelTA) – Head of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry (Gosatomnadzor) Olga Lugovskaya talked to BelTA and explained how Belarus continues sharing information relating to nuclear safety with the European Union.

Olga Lugovskaya said: “We used to actively cooperate with the Western European Nuclear Regulators’ Association (WENRA) and the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group (ENSREG). Represented by Gosatomnadzor, our country is an observer in these regional associations of regulatory bodies. Our interaction with them has not been suspended officially but we are no longer invited to attend events. Due to the geopolitical situation. We work within the framework of conventions. We are quite satisfied with it for now.”

In her words, Belarus receives information about the state of nuclear and radiation facilities in countries of the European Union via the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). “All the instruments are in use. We also get information about the state of such facilities in Lithuania, about the decommissioning of the Ignalina nuclear power plant. We’ve just recently received a Lithuanian report via the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Ministry about the environmental impact of the burial facility at the site of the Ignalina nuclear power plant. So interaction continues. We used to rely on direct contacts in the past. We now operate primarily via the IAEA and conventions,” the Gosatomnadzor head noted.

Belarus is now actively advancing interaction with other foreign partners. Since Belarus is no longer a beginner country in terms of the nuclear energy industry, the vector of international cooperation has changed. “We now actively interact with our colleagues, who follow in our footsteps in terms of nuclear energy industry development. A seminar with our Turkish colleagues took place in December. We shared the experience of how oversight is organized during the commissioning of the nuclear power plant. We enjoy interaction with Uzbekistan, which has also decided in favor of building a nuclear power plant. We have something to share and tell them. When Belarus was a beginner, experienced colleagues from foreign and international organizations helped us very actively,” Olga Lugovskaya pointed out.

For the countries, which are about to begin building the first nuclear power plant of their own, it is very important to create safety infrastructure, which consists of many components. Those are personnel, the regulatory environment, the emergency preparedness and response system, and waste management. “We are ready to work together with Türkiye, Uzbekistan, Egypt, and Vietnam in these areas. A memorandum with Nigeria has been drafted. We are ready to participate in expert evaluations in other countries. We could be useful in the countries where Russia is building nuclear power plants because we’ve already been through that. If such a request is made, we will be glad to respond to it,” the Gosatomnadzor head summarized.

Tags:

NEWSWIRE

17.07.2024

Belarus, Russia’s Rosatom plan to develop eco-friendly pesticide extraction technology

02.07.2024

Minister: Lukashenko’s decisions helped ensure effective performance of energy sector

27.06.2024

Chebotar: Economies of Belarus and Russia complement each other instead of competing with each other

21.06.2024

Good prospects for cooperation between Belarus, Russia’s Republic of Chuvashia in electric transport

19.06.2024

Protocol to agreement on parallel operation of Belarusian, Russian power grids ratified