Enhancing Security Conference Protecting Nuclear Sensitive Sites

The protection of French nuclear sites is based on shared responsibilities between the State and the plant operators. The State defines the threat and the protection objectives, and provides information and intervention in addition to the operator's obligations. The operator has an obligation of results over its holdings with regard to reference standards on threats provided by the State, in addition to its regulatory obligations. Hence, Electricité de France (EDF) must protect the 58 units of its nuclear fleet on French soil. To carry out its responsibilities, EDF has chosen an original model that is based on material means of physical protection as well as on human resources, with some members of staff serving under private contract but with EDF status (site security), and others put in place through an agreement with a sovereign force of the Ministry of the Interior, financed by EDF. Those units are called PSPGs (Pelotons Spécialisés de Protection de la Gendarmerie – Gendarmerie Specialist Protection Platoons), and they are counter-terrorist units formed by the GIGN. Their mission is to act on the operator's behalf against the highest levels of threat. Their sovereign nature means that the units are also the first level of the State's coordinated response; the gendarmerie is also present as a territorial police force that provides regional and national specialintervention forces. The attractiveness and relevance of this model that allows for good link-up between the operator's means and the State's means have been highlighted by inspections and realistic drill scenarios going back several years. Reference standards on threats are regularly updated by the State, and leads EDF to periodically review and improve its arrangements for protecting nuclear installations. The model developed by EDF complies with IAEA standards, especially as regards the fundamental principles of indepth defence, a security culture, and a graduated approach. (author)