Head of SNRIU - Chief State Inspector for Nuclear and Radiation Safety of Ukraine Oleh Korikov, as part of the Ukrainian delegation, took part in the meeting of the Assembly of Depositors of the International Cooperation Account for Chornobyl (hereinafter referred to as the ICСA), which was held via video conference on 5 December 2024 at the initiative of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Headquarters in London.

For many years, the EBRD and the ICСA contributing countries have been supporting the implementation of safety improvement projects at the Chornobyl NPP industrial site, including the transformation of the Shelter over the destroyed Chornobyl NPP Unit 4, where the largest man-made disaster in human history occurred. Thus, cooperation with the EBRD on the implementation of the ChNPP Shelter Action Plan within the framework of the Chornobyl Shelter Fund, created to finance this activity, allowed the successful construction and commissioning of the New Safe Confinement (NSC) over the Shelter, which is the first start-up complex of the NSC integral project.

At the same time, due to difficulties with filling the fund, the work on the second NSC start-up complex, which included the provision of the NSC with the necessary infrastructure and equipment and dismantling of unstable structures of the Shelter, was postponed indefinitely.

“The Second NSC Startup Complex is an integral part of the overall NSC project and an important task, the implementation of which will allow dismantling the unstable structures of the Shelter. Implementation of the project to stabilise the most unstable structures of the Shelter in 2008 allowed maintaining an acceptable level of their safety with a design life of 15 years, i.e. until the end of 2023. Further delays in the implementation of the project to dismantle the unstable structures of the Shelter under the NSC shell increase the risk of their collapse, which could lead to extremely negative consequences. This state of affairs causes serious concern of the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine”, SNRIU Chairman said in his speech.

He emphasised that the NSC complex and the Shelter require urgent resolution of safety issues of its operation.

During the meeting, the EBRD provided an update on the implementation of current and planned projects, institutional framework for their implementation, and financial status of the ICСA. The IAEA representatives also informed about the status of nuclear safety support programmes in Ukraine.