From February 21-25, David Squarer and Mihaela Biro of AdSTM led a Siting Workshop at the BAPETEN offices in Jakarta, Indonesia. Bob Schaaf from NRC/NRO participated and shared NRC perspectives with those in attendance. BAPETEN expects to receive an application for a site license in the 2014. The application will be preceded by a two year site evaluation process which is expected to consider the characteristics of 3 sites now being considered for placing the first nuclear power plant in Indonesia.
The workshop covered the requirements and guidance associated with reviewing an application for approval of a site for a nuclear power plant. In addition to covering the siting topics, the course also covered the regulatory processes used by the NRC for reactor licensing (10 CFR 50 and 10 CFR 52). A section on volcanic hazard to nuclear power plants was specially prepared for this version of the course given in Indonesia. The material was based on IAEA guidance on the topic.
Forty two BAPETEN staff members participated in this course. The large number of questions and discussions from the participants in all areas of the course showed the strong interest of BAPETEN in siting. In addition to the questions on the various technical topics, there were questions on regulatory processes, computer codes, methods of regulatory review, site data gathering and verification, human resources necessary for site review. All questions were successfully answered by the trainers and the NRC representatives. The examples provided during the course were appreciated and more examples were requested for future courses.
During the same time period a meeting to discuss future activities for the IRDP was held. Their draft plan now includes support to BAPETEN in 2011 to finalize their siting requirements and guidance documents. This meeting was attended by Ms Margaret Doane, Director of OIP, Kirk Foggie, OIP, and senior BAPETEN managers and staff.