Renewal of the nuclear safety regulation

STUK's nuclear safety regulation is revised. The aim of the renewal is to make the regulations and regulatory guides issued under the Nuclear Energy Act (990/1987) more goal-oriented and risk-conscious and to enable different plant solutions.

In late 2020, STUK decided to start a structural and substantive reform of its nuclear safety regulation. During 2021, preparations for the renewal were made, among other things, by examining the current status of the regulation and the need for changes, and by reviewing the regulation reforms already carried out by both domestic and foreign authorities. Based on the preparatory work, the overall renewal of the regulation was started in 2022 (SYTYKE project, 2022-2027).

The main objectives of STUK's regulatory renewal are to emphasise the responsibility of the operators, to correctly measure the requirements in terms of safety significance and to enable effective targeting of supervision on the basis of risk characterisation.  These objectives are part of STUK's strategy to develop regulatory activities and supervision.

The structural reform implies a review of STUK's regulation in accordance with Article 80 of the Constitution, which assesses how the requirements are placed in nuclear energy legislation and STUK's regulations. In addition, a clearer distinction will be made between the mandatory requirements and the normative material, such as recommendations and justifications. The starting point for the content reform is that the required safety level and the top-level principles remain unchanged.  After the renewal, the safety requirements are expected to be technology-neutral and less detailed, so that they do not unnecessarily limit the range of possible solutions.

Developing nuclear energy legislation

STUK's nuclear safety regulation renewal work and its timetables are closely linked to the overall reform project of the Nuclear Energy Act (990/1987) led by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment (TEM). The aim is to take into account the best possible realisation of the overall interests of society and to ensure the safety of nuclear energy use for people and the environment.

In order to achieve the objectives set for STUK's regulatory reform and the development of itsregulatory oversight activities, the precise regulatory powers to be enshrined in the Act must contain the basic provisions under which safety requirements can be issued and safety supervision carried out. This requires close cooperation and interaction between TEM, STUK and other actors in the nuclear sector

Overview of STUK regulatory renewal project

In 2022, STUK has established a project for the overall revision of the nuclear safety regulation.  STUK regulation consists of several different parts and a large number of STUK experts are involved in the preparation of the new regulation. In addition to drafting STUK's regulations and guides, we support the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment in the preparation of the Nuclear Energy Act.