Applicability of PRA methods and data to the financial risk assessment of nuclear power plants

Financial risk assessment, where the probability and severity of financial consequences are estimated, offers a logical framework for organizing and evaluating data pertinent to nuclear power plant accidents. Under the sponsorship of the Electric Power Research Institute, General Electric investigated the feasibility of financial risk assessment of nuclear power plants and of applying PRA methods and data in such an assessment. This paper summarizes the main findings of this investigation. Specifically, the paper discussed the following topics: definition of financial consequences and financial risk; overall approach for financial risk assessment and how it compares with the approach for PRA used in the Reactor Safety Study; and specific financial risk assessment procedures for defining initiating events, plant response sequences, institutional scenarios, and financial consequences and how they compare to analogous procedures for PRA