NCBJ has until May 15 to respond to additional questions from the nuclear regulator regarding MARIA

The National Atomic Energy Agency will issue a permit for the operation of the MARIA research reactor when the National Center for Nuclear Research (NCBJ) submits the appropriate documents, the president of the Agency, Andrzej Głowacki, told PAP. NCBJ said that it has until May 15 to respond to additional questions from the nuclear regulator.

On March 31 this year, after 10 years, the previous permit of the President of the National Atomic Energy Agency for the operation of the MARIA nuclear research reactor at NCBJ Świerk expired, and a new license has not yet been obtained. The reactor had to be shut down. This coincided with the planned cyclical break in the reactor's operation.

President of the National Atomic Energy Agency, Andrzej Głowacki, said in an interview with PAP that "when the National Centre for Nuclear Research submits the appropriate documents confirming compliance with all safety requirements, including the latest ones in the country, after conducting an assessment we will be able to issue a permit (for the operation of the MARIA reactor - PAP)".

Głowacki added that the Agency still cannot confirm that all safety requirements applicable in Poland for this reactor have been met. He recalled that NCBJ, as the entity operating this reactor, applied for a new permit to operate the reactor in August 2024 and supplemented the documentation several times.

The head of the nuclear regulator, when asked how long the over 50-year-old MARIA reactor could continue to operate, indicated that it would be "as long as it is safe." He pointed out that there are no specific time limits, and that NCBJ has applied for a permit for an indefinite period.

The National Centre for Nuclear Research told PAP that it had submitted an application for a new permit to operate the MARIA research reactor on August 20, 2024. "Since then, the National Atomic Energy Agency has been conducting administrative proceedings aimed at obtaining a new permit for the MARIA research reactor. We have submitted the application to the PAA along with 53 attachments, which in total constitutes approximately 1,500 pages of documentation," it explained.

NCBJ added that during the proceedings, in response to PAA's requests, nearly 1,000 questions regarding the submitted documentation were received. In response, approximately 50 additional attachments were provided.

The Center reported that recently the nuclear regulator had asked NCBJ another series of questions, which concerned over a hundred issues. "These are detailed questions regarding the procedures described in the submitted documents and theoretical scenarios of operation of devices and personnel in the conditions specified by the PAA. The answers to these questions require additional analyses and are provided immediately after their completion, in accordance with the set deadlines," it was stated in response to PAP's questions.

"The final deadline for responding to the current last series of inquiries, set by the supervision authority, is May 15, 2025," the National Center for Nuclear Research announced.

At the beginning of April, Paweł Gajda, head of the Department of Nuclear Energy of the Ministry of Industry, assured that intensive work was underway to supplement the documentation needed to issue a permit for the operation of the MARIA reactor. At the same time, he assessed that there was a very good chance that by the end of the technical break (10 May this year), it would be possible to obtain a PAA permit and the MARIA reactor would resume operations. The reactor license must be renewed every 10 years.

Earlier this month, Minister of Industry Marzena Czarnecka dismissed the director of the National Centre for Nuclear Research, Prof. Krzysztof Kurek. She justified the decision with the need to improve the functioning of the NCBJ, and in particular to prioritize the operation of the MARIA reactor.

The MARIA nuclear reactor is a research reactor that produces radioisotopes and is used for research. (PAP)

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