Safeguards and security by design support for the next generation nuclear plant project - Progress in safeguards by design (SBD) by the United States National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)

The Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) project was authorized by the United States Energy Policy Act of 2005 with the principal objective of designing, licensing, and building a Generation IV nuclear plant capable of producing both high-temperature process heat and electricity. The two candidate NGNP reactor concepts are pebble- and prismatic-fueled high-temperature gas reactors that will be licensed by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The conceptual design phase of the project was completed in December 2010. This paper summarizes support provided to the NGNP project to facilitate consideration of international safeguards during the design phase, or safeguards by design (SBD). Additional support was provided for domestic safeguards (material control and accounting) and physical protection, or safeguards and security by design (2SBD). The main focus of this paper is on SBD and international safeguards. Included is an overview of the international safeguards guidance contained in guidance reports for SBD. These reports contain guidance and suggestions intended to be useful to the industry design teams, but they do not contain ready-made solutions. Early and frequent interaction of design stakeholders with the International Atomic Energy Agency and the NRC are essential to a successful endeavor. The paper is followed by the slides of the presentation. (author)