Link to the study - European Parliament - Europa

Nuclear Decommissioning: Management of Costs and Risks
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some cases other conditions imposed by the Assembly of Contributors) and disburses directly to the
contractor. Grant Agreements can be suspended and terminated if the recipient fails to comply with
its provisions.
The Bank obliges the recipient to adhere strictly to the Bank’s Environmental and Social Policy.
The Bank appraises each potential project on its merits before it presents it to the Assembly but
always attaches great importance to the availability of a coherent strategic framework in which
individual projects have a logical place. This is true for energy sector projects but even more so for a
complex decades-long process such as the decommissioning of a nuclear power plant. In all three
countries significant work has been done on decommissioning strategies and regulatory
requirements for decommissioning planning. It was a high priority for the Bank to assist the recipients
in developing high quality decommissioning plans. The Bank has supported involvement of PMU
consultants and external experts using funding from the Funds to achieve this goal. Detailed
decommissioning plans, approved by the respective regulatory authorities, are now available for all
three NPPs. These define sequences, projects and schedule and take into account the most recent
inventory of radioactive materials.
It is true that decommissioning plans should ideally be available ahead of closure and some aspects
of decommissioning should already be taken into account in the design of the plant. However, the
three recipients did not find themselves in an ideal situation. In Soviet times, early planning for
decommissioning was underdeveloped in most countries. The decision to close the plants early
further reduced the preparatory time available, and reluctance to close (at some political,
management and workforce levels) was not conducive to thorough and genuine decommissioning
planning.
The Bank has created technical advisory bodies for all its funds. These are comprised of independent
experts nominated on the merit of their expertise. These groups have provided high level technical
guidance on strategic topics and were particularly helpful in the early phase of the programs when
strategic decisions on the direction of the program and on individual urgent projects had to be taken
in the absence of fully developed decommissioning plans.
Project Implementation
Project implementation is primarily a task for the recipient and its PMU. The Bank is, however, closely
involved. The Bank employs a senior program manager for each Fund, dedicated to overseeing work
one of that Fund. He (she) follows projects on a day-to-day basis and typically spends about half his
time at project sites for project review meetings and in depth analysis of project and procurement
documents. Project review includes all project and contract management areas, including the PMU’s
quality assurance and risk management approaches, and any technical or commercial issues
impacting progress.
The Bank is entitled to receive any project-related documentation. It receives detailed monthly
reports from the PMUs. One example of a monthly report (BIDSF) is attached as requested.
The recipient and its PMU develop technical specifications and cost and schedule estimates for
projects to be funded from the Fund. Occasionally, the recipient may propose a project which may
also be used for a purpose other than that of the decommissioning fund. It may, for instance, make
sense to design a waste facility so that it can be used for the treatment of historic waste, as well as for
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