NEA Mandates and Structures

Working Group on Integrity and Ageing of Components and Structures (WGIAGE)

Chair(s):	Ari KOSKINEN, Finland	Secretary:	Keiko CHITOSE (keiko.chitose@oecd-nea.org)
Vice-Chair(s):	Carlos CASTELAO LOPEZ, Spain
Member(s):	All NEA member countries^*
	Russia (Suspended*)
	^*Russian Federation suspended pursuant to a decision of the OECD Council.
Full participant(s):	European Commission Under the NEA Statute
Participant(s):	India
Observer(s)(International Organisation):	International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) By agreement
Date of creation:	31 December 1999
End of mandate:	31 December 2023

Mandate (Document reference):

Meeting of the enlarged Bureau of the Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations (CSNI) [SEN/SIN(81)31]
Summary Record of the 15^th Meeting of the CSNI [SEN/SIN(87)68]
Summary Record of the 26^th Meeting of the CSNI [NEA/SEN/SIN(99)1]
Summary Record of the 28^th Meeting of the Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations (CSNI) [NEA/SEN/SIN(2001)1]
CSNI Operating Plan (2006-2009) [NEA/CSNI/R(2007)7]
Summary Record of the 40^th Meeting of the CSNI [NEA/SEN/SIN(2007)1, Item 5]
Summary Record of the 47^th Meeting of the CSNI [NEA/SEN/SIN(2010)2]
CSNI Operating Plan (2011-2016) [NEA/CSNI/R(2011)2]
Summary Record of the 61^st Meeting of the CSNI [NEA/SEN/SIN(2017)2]
CSNI Operating Plan and Guidelines (2017-2022) [NEA/CSNI/R(2017)17]
Summary Record of the 68^th Meeting of the CSNI [NEA/SEN/SIN(2020)3]
CSNI Operating Plan and Guidelines (2017-2022) [NEA/CSNI/R(2017)17/REV1]
Participant Status of India in the CSNI and its subsidiary bodies: 2018 Update of the NEA Participation Plan [NEA/NE(2018)8], Summary of Decisions taken at the 137th Session of the Steering Committee [NEA/SUM/DEC(2018)2] and official letter received from India on 31 October 2019 confirming its acceptance of Participant Status in the CSNI and its subsidiary bodies

Mandate (Document extract):

Extract from document NEA/CSNI/R(2017)17/REV1

Mandate

Scope and Objectives

The main mission of the Working Group on Integrity and Ageing of Components and Structures (WGIAGE) is to advance the current understanding of those aspects relevant to ensuring the integrity of structures, systems and components (SSC) under design and beyond design basis loads, to provide guidance in choosing the optimal ways of dealing with respective challenges to operating and new nuclear power plants as well as other nuclear facilities, and to make use of an integrated approach to design, safety and plant life management.

A part of the Working Group activities is aimed at understanding and evaluating the technical underpinnings that support national and international codes, standards, and regulations associated with structural integrity, material performance, and material degradation of safety significant SSCs. Such activities may investigate the technical basis of codes and standards, and assess the methods for quantifying associated margins.

The Working Group shall report to the Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations (CSNI) and assist that Committee with its work. With prior approval of CSNI, the Working Group shall collaborate with or respond to requests from the CSNI Programme Review Group (PRG) and Working Groups and other NEA bodies or other international organisations.

The Working Group will co-ordinate its work with other working groups, notably with the Working Group on External Events (WGEV) and the Working Group on Risk Assessment (WGRISK) on safety evaluation of seismic hazards, with the Working Group on Electrical Power Systems (WGELEC) on the long-term safety of electrical and Instrumentation and Control (I&C) components, and with the Working Group on Analysis and Management of Accidents (WGAMA) on interdisciplinary aspects of component integrity.

The Working Group will have three ad-hoc subgroups dealing with a) integrity and ageing of metal structures and components, b) integrity and ageing of concrete structures and c) seismic engineering.

The specific mandate is as follows:

The Working Group shall constitute a forum to exchange views, information and experience on generic technical aspects of integrity and ageing of components and structures, and review, as necessary, national and international programmes concentrating on research, operational aspects and regulation.
The Working Group shall stimulate, in relevant technical areas, new research, and recommend and lead possible international co-operative projects.
The Working Group shall a) develop technical positions on specific integrity issues of operating and new nuclear power plants and research reactors covering the entire life cycle; and b) identify areas where further work is needed.
The Working Group shall discuss the potential impact of ageing and other challenges to integrity of SSC on the safety, the regulation, and the operability of operating and new nuclear power plants as well as of other nuclear facilities.

Interactions

The NEA has established Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with a number of organiszations – e.g. COG, CRIEPI, EPRI and WANO – to promote international collaboration, particularly in the area of nuclear safety. Accordingly, representatives from these organiszations can be invited to participate in the activities of CSNI working groups, consistent with the MOUs, to co-ordinate their work and to avoid unnecessary duplication.

The CSNI sponsors a number of joint safety research projects and expects that the CSNI working groups will promote technical exchanges with relevant projects, and provide technical support as appropriate.

Deliverables

The deliverables of the CSNI and its working groups are technical reports, proceedings of seminars or workshops, final summary reports from joint projects, state-of-the-art reports, and technical or collective opinion papers.