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IAEA and Idaho National Laboratory to Cooperate to Strengthen Nuclear Installation Safety

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Peter Wells, Chief Operations Officer for Nuclear Science and Technology at Idaho National Laboratory, and IAEA Deputy Director General Juan Carlos Lentijo, Head of the Department of Safety and Security, shake hands after signing a Practical Agreement. Behind them are (from left): IAEA Senior Nuclear Safety Officer Anthony Ulses, Idaho National Laboratory Director of International Programs, Nuclear Science and Technology Bonnie C. Hong, and IAEA Nuclear Installation Safety Director Greg Rzentkowski. (Photo: D. Calma/IAEA)

The IAEA and the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in the United States agreed to expand their cooperation to strengthen nuclear installation safety.

Juan Carlos Lentijo, IAEA Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Nuclear Safety and Security and Peter Wells, the INL’s Chief Operations Officer for Nuclear Science and Technology, signed a Practical Arrangements agreement on 6 December 2018 at the IAEA’s headquarters in Vienna. Mr Wells represented the INL’s Associate Laboratory Director for Nuclear Science and Technology, John C. Wagner.

INL, the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy national laboratory, aims to discover, demonstrate and secure innovative nuclear energy solutions, other clean energy options and critical infrastructure.

Under the agreement, the laboratory will support the IAEA in work to help Member States strengthen research reactor safety, operational safety and external event safety for nuclear installations. It will provide experts to relevant IAEA peer review and advisory services and meetings, and host IAEA scientific visits and fellowships and meetings.

“This agreement consolidates our cooperation and work under the agreement will contribute to facilitating the exchange of safety-relevant experience and information,” Lentijo said. “This will help countries develop the technical knowledge they need.”

Wells added: “Idaho National Laboratory has a long history of supporting the International Atomic Energy Agency. We are pleased to establish this framework of collaboration in vital areas of nuclear safety, and look forward to continuing our support to the IAEA.”

The agreement, the first of its kind involving IAEA and INL,  is valid for three years and can be extended.

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