for the period May 17 through May 30, 1997
Prepared by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, Washington

RUSSIA

Novovoronezh Plant Configuration Management Project Gets Under Way. Work began on the configuration management project at Novovoronezh nuclear power plant (NPP) in meetings on May 19 and 20 between plant staff and U.S. team members. A U.S. specialist and a Parsons Power Group, Inc., representative gave a presentation on the basics and benefits of configuration management and described the planned project. The plant computer network system and document tracking and distribution process also were reviewed. Agreements were reached and documented in a protocol to begin the project. (Dan Couch, PNNL, 509-372-4591)

Russian Plants to Receive Upgraded Circuit Breakers. U.S. technical specialists met with three Russian-based companies to evaluate their capabilities and potential participation in a project to develop circuit breakers for Russian NPPs. Meetings also were held with Rosenergoatom representatives to discuss overall project scope. Rosenergoatom identified Smolensk as the pilot plant for this project. (Ron Wright, PNNL, 509-372-4076)

Novovoronezh Safety Assessment Team Holds First Meeting. The first meeting of the project team responsible for overseeing the in-depth safety assessment of Novovoronezh Units 3 and 4 was held in Moscow on May 22 and 23. Members of the project team and the Russia management team were introduced at the meeting. The group discussed the status of task orders and the schedules for upcoming activities. Members of the group also proposed that the first steering committee meeting be held in mid-July 1997 at Novovoronezh NPP. A second meeting of the project team will be held in conjunction with the steering committee meeting. The team will schedule a training session on probabilistic risk assessment at Novovoronezh for either immediately before or after the July project meeting. Staff from Science Applications International Corporation will coordinate the training. (Jordi Roglans, ANL, 630-252-3283)

Safety Assessment Code Validation Meeting Held. A series of meetings was held in mid-May as part of an ongoing effort to validate computer codes for application to RBMK and VVER safety assessments. Members of the U.S. team participated in the Nuclear Energy Agency's VVER thermal-hydraulics code validation meeting held at Gidropress in Podolsk on May 14 and 15. The VVER code validation discussion continued at the Russian International Nuclear Safety Center in Moscow on May 16, followed by a discussion of project guidelines and a visit to the Electrogorsk Research Center for Nuclear Power Plant Safety on May 17. On May 19 through 21, the talks were centered on code validation for RBMK reactors and the overall project. Other Russian organizations participating in the meetings included Minatom, Rosenergoatom, Gosatomnadzor, the Nuclear Safety Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Research and Development Institute of Power Engineering, the Kurchatov Institute, and the Institute of Physics and Power Engineering. (Jordi Roglans, ANL, 630-252-3283)

UKRAINE

Zaporizhzhya Configuration Management Project Begins. During the week of May 12, participants in the Ukraine configuration management project at Zaporizhzhya NPP met to begin project activities. A U.S. specialist and a Stone & Webster Engineering Company representative first described the project to the deputy chairman of Ukraine's Nuclear Regulatory Administration in Kyiv. The next three days were spent at Zaporizhzhya, holding discussions with management personnel on project plans and providing basic training in configuration management to plant staff. The U.S. representatives also assessed the plant's computer and network capabilities and reviewed the status of the document control processes and procedures. (Dan Couch, PNNL, 509-372-4591)

Chornobyl Computer Specialists Receive Simulator-Related Training. May 27 through 29, four computer software specialists from Chornobyl NPP were at Brookhaven National Laboratory for training to familiarize them with the operating system that will be used on the Silicon Graphics Inc. computer for the Chornobyl Unit 3 analytical simulator. The specialists then traveled to Columbia, Maryland, for three additional weeks of simulator-specific training at GSE Power Systems, Inc. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982).

VVER Reactor Safety Evaluation Projects Reviewed. On May 20 and 21, the steering committee for plant safety evaluations of Ukraine's VVER reactors met in Bethesda, Maryland, to review status of the projects. Attending from Ukraine were Derzhkomatom/Energocompany staff and representatives of all VVER plants in Ukraine. Also present were representatives of Ukrainian subcontractors and U.S. technical assistance contractors.

The status of the lead projects at South Ukraine Unit 1 and Zaporizhzhya Unit 5 was reviewed. Plans for future project work were outlined, and the extension of U.S. support for the safety assessments at Rivne and Khmelnytskyy NPPs was discussed. Further training needs for Ukrainian analysts and Ukrainian priorities for additional safety evaluation support also were discussed.

The U.S. team presented an overview of the scope of the U.S.-supported plant safety project relative to the Ukrainian in-depth safety assessment report requirements. The need for implementing peer reviews for the safety assessment was discussed. As a result, Derzhkomatom will explore which organizations in Ukraine can undertake this task.

On May 22, technical specialists from Argonne National Laboratory and Scientech met with Zaporizhzhya NPP representatives to discuss implementation of the safety assessment project for Unit 5. They reviewed details of the tasks for data collection and analysis and the Level 1 internal events probabilistic risk assessment, and agreed on computer hardware needs for the effort. (Christian Kot, ANL, 630-252-6151)

CHORNOBYL SHELTER PROJECT

Final Shelter Implementation Plan Completed. The final Shelter Implementation Plan was completed on May 23 and distributed on schedule by the end of May. The plan documents the detailed logic, technical description, and cost breakdown for the tasks needed to implement the recommended safety enhancements for the shelter. U.S. participants in completing the plan include experts from Stone & Webster Engineering Company, Parsons Power Group, Science Applications International Corporation, Bechtel Hanford Inc., and Scientech. The key European participant was Trischler and Partner. The work was done in close cooperation with the Chornobyl Shelter operations and Ukraine institutes. The Shelter Implementation Plan will support the development of G-7 pledges to the project. Those financial pledges are an expected outcome of the G-7 Summit scheduled for June 20 and 21 in Denver, Colorado.

The next step in the International Shelter Project is to develop bid packages for urgent early-start projects. Those bid packages will be tendered as soon as possible to keep the shelter project on schedule. U.S. participants in this effort will include Parsons Power Group and Science Applications International Corporation. The key European participant will be Trischler and Partner. The G-7 has selected the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to manage the finances for the project and hire an organization to manage the work in the field. Over the next several months, the International Shelter Project team will work with EBRD and the Chornobyl Shelter operations organization to develop the early-start project packages for tendering by fall 1997. (Dennis Kreid, PNNL, 509-375-2170)

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

Lithuania: Contracts Signed for Ignalina NPP Configuration Management Program. On May 22, members of the U.S. team met in Vilnius, Lithuania, with representatives of the Swedish International Project (SIP), computer vendor International Financial Systems (IFS) of Sweden, Stone & Webster Engineering Company, and Ignalina NPP to negotiate contracts related to the Ignalina configuration management program. The contracts cover provision of computer hardware, software, and training for the reliability maintenance management system/configuration management process at Ignalina NPP. The United States will purchase the computer hardware and training from IFS, while Sweden will purchase the computer software. Ignalina NPP agreed to provide translation and review of training materials, classroom space in which to conduct the training, and on-site support (transportation, meals, lodging) for IFS instructional staff during training sessions at the plant. The meeting culminated with signing of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)-IFS contract, the SIP-IFS contract, and the PNNL-Ignalina NPP agreement. (Dan Couch, PNNL, 509-372-4591)

PLANNED ACTIVITIES

• "*" indicates the event is a new item or has been changed from the last report.
  
• "TBD" means the event date or location is to be determined.
  
• Note: in the interest of providing a timely update on the Soviet-Designed-Reactor Safety Program, no formal document review of this weekly report has been conducted by DOE or PNNL.

*May 30-June 6 -- Slavutych, Ukraine.
A delegation of U.S. experts will meet with representatives of Chornobyl NPP and the Ukrainian construction firm Ukrenergobud to review estimates of personnel exposure and work schedule planning related to the upcoming stabilization efforts for the Unit 4 ventilation stack. (Dan Giessing, DOE, 301-903-2852)

June 1-3 -- Slavutych, Ukraine.
U.S. technical specialists and contractor Parsons Power Group, Inc., will meet with Chornobyl NPP management to discuss installation of the Chornobyl safety parameter display system. Participants will determine plans for final connection and testing. (Norman Fletcher, DOE, 301-903-3275)

*June 1-7 -- Slavutych, Ukraine.
Staff of Chornobyl NPP and the Chornobyl Center for Nuclear Safety, Radioactive Waste and Radioecology/Slavutych Laboratory for International Research and Technologies (Chornobyl Center/Slavutych Laboratory) will assist a U.S. technical expert in completing the final draft of a comprehensive needs assessment. The document identifies future projects at the Chornobyl Shelter that will require physical and/or computer models of the shelter and Chornobyl Unit 4. It also lists and describes ongoing modeling efforts and additional needs for modeling support. (Norman Fletcher, DOE, 301-903-3275)

*June 2-6 -- Vienna, Austria.
Representatives of the International Atomic Energy Agency and the U.S. team will meet to coordinate technology transfer activities planned for Armenia NPP. The U.S. training lead also will participate in a follow-up to the Consultants' Meeting on the Training and Development of Management Personnel for Nuclear Power Plants, held in the United States in March 1997. (Sonja Haber, BNL, 516-344-3575)

June 2-6 -- Columbia, Maryland, USA.
Review meetings are planned for the Chornobyl and Novovoronezh analytical simulator efforts. Staff from Chornobyl and Novovoronezh NPPs, GSE Power Systems, Inc., and the U.S. team will participate in the review. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982)

June 2-7 -- Kyiv, Ukraine.
U.S. team members will meet with Ukraine representatives to discuss establishing a reliability database in Ukraine that will be available to all NPPs. Such a database can help in determining the time between component replacement and overhauls, planning periodic testing of equipment, determining the cause of component failure, and selecting spare parts. In addition, a nationally available reliability database also provides a method to share lessons learned among plants that use similar equipment and furnishes essential input to probabilistic risk assessments. (Grigory Trosman, DOE, 301-903-3581)

June 2-8 -- Stockholm, Sweden.
The working group of the Leningrad NPP probabilistic safety assessment will hold a series of discussions covering accident sequence analysis, proposed scope of the in-depth safety assessment for Leningrad NPP, and reliability data collection. Representatives of ENTEK, Swedish International Programs, AEA-Technologies, Leningrad NPP, and the U.S. team will participate. (Walt Pasedag, DOE, 301-903-3628) In addition, participants from the Ignalina NPP emergency operating instruction effort will conduct a general strategy meeting to assess project status and future needs and to coordinate development work with the Lithuanian Energy Institute and Vatesi. (Dennis Meyers, DOE, 301-903-1418)

*June 2-13 -- Kola NPP, Russia.
General Physics Corporation staff will work with Kola NPP training staff to develop a training program on mechanical maintenance as part of the training technology transfer program. This is the first of three visits to the Kola NPP that will occur as part of the development of this training course. (Sonja Haber, BNL, 516-344-3575)

*June 2-28 -- Slavutych, Ukraine.
A U.S. expert in decontamination and decommissioning activities will meet with managers of the Chornobyl Center for Nuclear Safety, Radioactive Waste and Radioecology/Slavutych Laboratory for International Research and Technologies (Chornobyl Center/Slavutych Laboratory) and Chornobyl NPP. Together they will establish a Chornobyl NPP deactivation, decontamination, and decommissioning working group of representatives of the Chornobyl Center/Slavutych Laboratory, the Ukraine Nuclear Regulatory Administration, the plant, and others. (Riaz Awan, DOE, 301-903-2687)

*June 2-13 -- Smolensk NPP, Russia.
Sonalysts, Inc., experts will work with Smolensk NPP training staff to develop a training program on mechanical maintenance as part of the training technology transfer program. This is the second of three visits to the Smolensk NPP that will occur as part of the development of this training course. (Sonja Haber, BNL, 516-344-3575)

*Date Changed to June 4-6 -- Prague, Czech Republic.
U.S. technical specialists will meet with representatives of scientific institutes Rez and VUJE, the Ukraine State Scientific and Technical Center, and Rivne and Kozloduy NPPs. Participants will discuss the possibility of Rez and VUJE performing technical basis calculations for emergency operating instructions for VVER reactors. (Dennis Meyers, DOE, 301-903-1418) (Workshop No. 97-100; Travel Coordinator Gail Flora, PNNL, 509-375-6554)

June 8-10 -- St. Petersburg, Russia.
U.S. technical leads will establish a task order for the reliability data collection effort at Leningrad NPP. They also will meet with Leningrad management to initiate work on the task. (Walt Pasedag, DOE, 301-903-3628)

*June 8-14 -- Moscow, Russia.
The steering committee for the Kursk NPP safety and risk assessment will meet to determine assessment strategy and plans. Representatives of the U.S. team will join Rosenergoatom and other Russian organizations to staff for discussions of analysis code validation, verification, and certification. (Walt Pasedag, DOE, 301-903-3628)

*June 9-12 -- Moscow, Russia.
U.S. technical leaders will meet with ENTEK to discuss remaining issues associated with completion of analysis for the RBMK emergency operating instructions. (Dennis Meyers, DOE, 301-903-1418)

*June 9-13 -- Kyiv, Ukraine.
The Ukraine Quality Assurance Working Group will finalize its joint project plan. Working group members comprise representatives of Energoatom, each NPP site in Ukraine, and the Main State Inspectorate. The group was chartered to improve the safety of nuclear power operations through application of quality assurance practices at the reactor sites. The joint project plan will define the nature and extent of support the United States will provide to the working group. (Dennis Meyers, DOE, 301-903-1418)

June 10-12 -- Moscow, Russia.
Technical leads from the U.S. team will meet with representatives of ENTEK to discuss remaining issues associated with completion of analyses for RBMK reactor emergency operating instructions. They also will discuss the status of ENTEK's analysis support to the Leningrad probabilistic safety assessment. (Bob Moffitt, PNNL, 509-372-4108)

*June 13-14 -- Vienna, Austria.
A U.S. health physicist will meet with a representative of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to discuss the IAEA's new guidance for emergency planning in eastern European countries. (Dan Giessing, DOE, 301-903-2852)

*June 14-27 -- Vienna, Austria.
A technical expert from the U.S. team will participate in an IAEA consultants meeting. The consultants will finalize the draft report of a study begun in May 1996 on RBMK fuel channel integrity. (Walt Pasedag, DOE, 301-903-3628)

*June 15-20 -- Slavutych, Ukraine.
U.S. team members will meet with managers of the Chornobyl Center/Slavutych Laboratory to confirm and complete advance planning for an international conference on Chornobyl, scheduled for July 17, 1997. They also will discuss the purpose, format, and implementation of a new agreement between the Slavutych Laboratory and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory for conducting joint projects. (Giulia Bisconti, DOE, 202-586-5903)

*June 15-21 -- Kola NPP, Russia.
U.S. team staff and an expert from Victoreen will travel to Kola NPP to assist plant staff in completing the installation and testing of the high-level radiation monitors. (George Greene, BNL, 516-344-2296).

*June 15-21 -- Yerevan, Armenia.
Representatives of the U.S. team and contractor Burns & Roe will meet with staff of Armenia NPP to initiate safety improvement work on the plant's main steam isolation valves. Participants also will discuss ongoing projects for an emergency feedwater supply system and an alternative decay heat removal system. (Dennis Meyers, DOE, 301-903-1418)

*June 15-21 -- Moscow, Russia.
U.S. technical leads will meet with representatives of the Kurchatov Institute. Participants will integrate the efforts of the Kurchatov Institute and two U.S. national laboratories into the first draft of a final report for the Leningrad Unit 1 decommissioning strategy study. (Rich Reister, DOE, 301-903-0234)

*June 15-22 -- Slavutych, Ukraine.
U.S. health physics experts will meet with representatives of the Chornobyl Shelter and the Nuclear Regulatory Administration to develop a consensus plan for co-preparation of an upgraded emergency plan for the shelter. (Dan Giessing, DOE, 301-903-2852)

*June 16-20 -- Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Two representatives of Gosatomnadzor will attend a training course, "Radioactivity in the Environment: Risk, Assessment and Measurement." The course is being offered at Harvard University. (Edward Branagan, Jr., DOE, 301-903-6509) (Workshop No. 97-079; Travel Coordinator Gail Flora, PNNL, 509-375-6554)

June 16-20 -- Armenia NPP, Armenia.
U.S. technical leads will meet with representatives of Armenia NPP to take next steps on current projects and discuss potential new projects. Key activities include system design, contracting, and equipment purchasing. (Dennis Meyers, DOE, 301-903-1418)

*June 16-27 -- Khmelnytskyy NPP, Ukraine.
U.S. specialists will visit Khmelnytskyy NPP to continue work on the development of the Control Room Reactor Operator training course. The course will be implemented during the second week of this working period. This is the eighth pilot training program that has been jointly developed by U.S. and Khmelnytskyy training specialists under the training program development effort in Ukraine. (Sonja Haber, BNL, 516-344-3575)

*June 16-27 -- Bilibino NPP, Russia.
Sonalysts, Inc., experts will work with Bilibino NPP training staff to develop a training program for shift supervisors as part of the training technology transfer program. This is the first of three visits to Bilibino NPP that will occur as part of the development of this training course. (Sonja Haber, BNL, 516-344-3575)

*June 17-21 -- Berlin, Germany.
A U.S. expert in nondestructive examination (NDE) will present an invited paper at the European-American workshop, "Determination of Reliability and Validation Methods of NDE." (Grigory Trosman, DOE, 301-903-3581)

*June 21-26 -- Kyiv, Ukraine.
Representatives of the U.S. team and contractors Burns & Roe and Tritech Group Inc. will attend the kickoff meeting of the steering committee for implementation of the Ukraine VVER safety parameter display systems. The committee will establish the schedule for spring 1998 outages at Khmelnytskyy Unit 1 and Zaporizhzhya Unit 5 as well as set tentative schedules for system installations at nine other plants. (Norman Fletcher, DOE, 301-903-3275)

*June 23-27 -- Kozloduy NPP, Bulgaria.
A DOE training expert will conduct a course in the Systematic Approach to Training for upper management of Kozloduy NPP. (Sonja Haber, BNL, 516-344-3575)

June 23-27 -- Trnava, Slovakia.
A training course on the PACER and NEPTUNE codes will be presented by technical staff from Argonne National Laboratory. The training course is the final activity in the transfer of the codes and related documentation to the Slovakians. PACER and NEPTUNE are state-of-the-art codes for calculating containment loads from pipe-break loading and containment structural response/ultimate strength, respectively. (Nicholas Grossman, DOE, 301-903-3299)

*June 26-July 11 -- Energodar and Neteshin, Ukraine.
Representatives of U.S. contractors Tritech Group Inc. And Burns & Roe will conduct site visits at Zaporizhzhya Unit 5 and Khmelnytskyy Unit 1 in preparation for implementing safety parameter display systems at both plants during the spring 1998 outages. (Norman Fletcher, DOE, 301-903-3275)

June 30-July 10 -- Columbia, Maryland, USA.
Members of training staff at Chornobyl and Novovoronezh NPPs will participate in training sessions for simulator instructors. GSE Power Systems, Inc., will provide the training. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982) (Workshop No. 97-089; Travel Coordinator Gail Flora, PNNL, 509-375-6554)

*June 30-July 11 -- Dimitrovgrad, Russia.
Sonalysts, Inc., experts will work with training specialists of the Research Institute of Nuclear Reactors (NIIAR) to develop a training program for shift supervisors as part of the training technology transfer program. This is the first of three visits to the institute that will occur as part of the development of this training course. (Sonja Haber, BNL, 516-344-3575)

*June 30-July 11 -- Kozloduy NPP, Bulgaria.
U.S. specialists will visit Kozloduy NPP to work on the development of the Control Room Reactor Operator training course. This is the second of four visits to Kozloduy NPP that will occur as part of the development of this training course. (Sonja Haber, BNL, 516-344-3575)

*July 29 -- Moscow, Russia.
Staff of Burns & Roe and Atomenergoproekt will present results of the battery upgrade projects at Kola and Kursk NPPs. Representatives of U.S. battery manufacturing firms will meet with Russian battery manufacturers to discuss possible joint ventures. (Ron Wright, PNNL, 509-372-4076)

*September 1-12 -- Chornobyl NPP, Ukraine.
General Physics Corporation staff will work with training staff from the Chornobyl NPP to continue development work on the Control Room Reactor Operator training course. (Sonja Haber, BNL, 516-344-3575)

*September 27-October 3 -- Helsinki, Finland.
The Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations (CSNI) will hold its second meeting for simulator and plant analyzer specialists. Participants, limited to specialists nominated by delegates to the CSNI, will exchange information and experiences and discuss the future of simulators and plant analyzers. (John Yoder, DOE, 301-903-5650)