Nuclear safety and the safe management of radioactive waste are critical to the European Union, said EU Ambassador to Serbia Emanuele Giaufret during a visit to the public enterprise Nuclear Facilities of Serbia. The Ambassador paid a visit to the facility in Vinča to mark the completion of the EUR 2 million project ” Support to the Regulatory Body of Serbia and the Vinča Site,” which also saw a donation of relevant equipment.
“Both safety and security of existing infrastructure and the management of nuclear waste must adhere to the highest standards,” Giaufret said.
Giaufret noted that the EU paid great attention to meeting those standards to ensure nuclear viability and safety.
“We have an entire framework for setting up appropriate capacity for nuclear energy and nuclear facility management,” Giaufret pointed out.
The Ambassador reminded that the EU had worked in that area with Serbia for over two decades, donating more than EUR 20 million for equipment and expertise.
“I am pleased to see that the team at this facility is dedicated to their job,” Giaufret said.
Giaufret met with the facility’s managing director, Dalibor Arbutina, who said that the enterprise had achieved high standards of nuclear safety and was ready to “lead Serbia in the EU” in that area.
“On behalf of the Nuclear Facilities of Serbia, I want to thank Ambassador Giaufret and the European Commission for all the support they have extended to us,” Arbutina said.
He also reminded us that the Nuclear Facilities of Serbia are among the signatories of the Memorandum of Understanding on the application and development of nuclear energy in the Republic of Serbia.
Arbutina said that a EUR 2.5 million donation from the European Commission made the furnishing of the radiochemical lab, used for nuclear forensics, possible.
Giaufret toured the enterprise’s facilities, including old and new hangars for storing radioactive waste, a facility for radioactive waste recycling, and the nuclear reactor.
Furthermore, he visited the labs within the facility housing nuclear reactors, furnished with equipment supplied via an EU donation.
The project “Support to the Regulatory Body of Serbia and the Vinča Site” was focused on addressing key challenges relevant to Serbia’s EU accession process.
That includes further transposition of EU legal framework in radiation protection and nuclear safety, as well as enhancing SRBATOM’s capacities and capabilities for conducting oversight related to radiation protection, nuclear safety, and radioactive waste management. Additionally, assistance was provided in the decommissioning and restoration of selected facilities.
The European Commission, through its Instrument for Nuclear Safety Cooperation (INSC) 2014 – 2020, supports the promotion of nuclear safety culture and radiation protection, the safe management of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste, and the implementation of effective and efficient measures for safeguarding nuclear materials in non-EU countries.
The European Union is the largest donor to Serbia in the energy sector. Over the past decade, the EU has provided more than EUR 600 million in grants for Serbia’s energy sector. In Serbia, the EU finances projects aimed at security of supply, diversification of sources and directions of energy supply, market liberalization and improvement of energy efficiency.
