The World Association of Nuclear Operators, WANO, provides technical support and oversight to nuclear operators, regularly doing reviews to identify good practices and shortcomings in nuclear installations. In the past, the first step was the so-called partner inspection prior to commissioning, but the organization has recognized the importance of professional support and exchange of experiences at the design and construction stages to prevent unintended incidents. Sándor Nagy, WANO's technical support director, spoke about this on the occasion of the meeting of the WANO working group supporting the construction of new units in Paks. The work involves foreign experts experienced in commissioning and operation as well as people working on projects in the design and construction phase – the meeting included lecturers from Brazil, Belgium, the Czech Republic, South Korea, France, China, Russia, Spain and Turkey. – A minor issue can cause serious technical problems years later. We are looking at how far problems during operation, such as the ingress of a foreign body or corrosion, can be traced back to design – said Sándor Nagy. He added: The aim is to raise awareness of what needs to be paid attention to during the design, construction and operation phases in order to develop a safe operating environment and a nuclear safety mindset.

At the Paks meeting, after a welcome speech by Roland Bunkóczi, operations director of Paks II Ltd., representatives of various power plant projects in different phases shared their experiences, talked about the challenges they face and what they are looking for help with. On the third day of the meeting, the participants visited the nuclear power plant, and then received detailed information on the latest developments in the Paks II project from chief engineer Gábor Volent at the construction site.