Specialists of Rosatom Technical Academy took part in the IAEA–STAR-NET Regional School to Train the Trainers on Nuclear Energy System Modelling and Assessment Using the INPRO Methodology. This is the first such event organized by the IAEA which was held in an online format from April 26 to 30, 2021.
The introductory training on the planning and modelling of nuclear energy systems (NESs) and on the use of the INPRO methodology to perform sustainability assessments of NESs, in order to assist Member States in long range and strategic planning for the development of nuclear energy programmes as part of their national energy mix has been provided during the School.
During the training, participants were introduced to the basics of the economics of nuclear power, the modeling of energy systems using the IAEA MESSAGE tool, and the INPRO methodology for various components of the nuclear industry, such as economy, infrastructure, waste management, environment, proliferation resistance and safety. The role of low-carbon nuclear power in mitigating the effects of the climate change was also discussed, an overview of advanced reactor technologies was presented, and the state and national approaches to the nuclear fuel cycle were discussed.
In addition to the direct participation in the School as trainees, representatives of the Academy acted as expert lecturers at the invitation of the IAEA. Galina Fesenko, Chief expert for international affairs of the International Center for Nuclear Infrastructure Personnel Training, and Mikhail Fedorov, Head of project management office “Nuclear Infrastructure Development Planning”, based on their experience in working with INPRO tools prepared and provided a lecture at the School on the topic “Modeling of nuclear Power Systems using the MESSAGE software”. Also, the main directions of the Academy’s activities at the national and international levels were presented, with a focus on the “Train-The-Trainers” approach, which has been implemented since 2008, aimed at the training of university faculty members and instructors from countries that have chosen the path of nuclear energy programmes development.
The School demonstrated synergy and co-directionality of the approaches implemented by the International Atomic Energy Agency and Rosatom Technical Academy in the implementation of training for newcomer countries in the field of planning and modeling of nuclear energy systems. This event was a new step towards the implementation Joint Russia-IAEA INPRO School for Managers and Decision-Makers in the Nuclear Sector and Government.
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Rosatom Technical Academy is an industry center of excellence for the development of nuclear technology competencies and a Center for cooperation between the International Atomic Energy Agency in three areas, including non-power applications of nuclear technologies.
Rosatom Technical Academy regularly conducts training to build national competencies in the field of nuclear infrastructure development in accordance with the IAEA milestones approach. Since 2014 the Rosatom Technical Academy has been including INPRO tools for the analysis of nuclear energy systems with the introduction of a small-power reactors in the training courses for the new-comer countries. In August 2019, at the joint Russia-IAEA School of Nuclear Power Management for young specialists, a pilot practical training was held in the field of comparative evaluation and selection of one of the small-power reactor projects for operation in specified regions using the tool for multi-criteria evaluation and selection of the nuclear energy system option – KIND-ET. In October 2019, as part of the second stage of training of the Tianwan NPP specialists, experts of the Rosatom Technical Academy prepared and read the module “Energy Strategy and Nuclear Energy Planning”, in which trainees were introduced to the IAEA energy planning tool – MESSAGE. In November 2019, a pilot training course was held for specialists of the Republic of Uzbekistan on assessing the role of nuclear power in the low-carbon development strategy using the MESSAGE tool. In December 2019, a consultation meeting was held at the Rosatom Technical Academy, organized by the INPRO section of the IAEA on trial application and discussion of the results of the IAEA basic training course on the topic “Scenario analysis and decision support for the development of the increased stability nuclear energy systems”.
In 2021 the Rosatom Technical Academy in cooperation with the ROSATOM’s core and supporting universities, plans to provide a set of training events in the “Train-The-Trainers” format, covering a wide range of topics, from the electricity generation at the large-scale and SMR-based NPPs and the production of modern radiopharmaceuticals at research reactors for the irradiation of medical materials and agricultural products and for the diagnosis and treatment of oncology. New directions for this format will be the decommissioning of nuclear facilities, as well as engineering competencies in the field of nuclear facilities construction and operation.