CONSULTING

Shelter Implementation Plan/New Safe Confinement265, 266, 267
Following the construction of the “sarcophagus” above the destroyed unit 4, some additional work
has been carried out in 1997 to minimize the risk of its collapse. A limited stabilization was
achieved with great difficulties in high-radiation levels inside and outside the structure. Safety and
protection of personnel and the environment has been improved since. A Fire Protection System
and an Integrated Automated Control System have been installed with the purpose of monitoring
the status of the shelter, including the “fuel containing material (FCM)” i.e. the corium, collected in
the lower section of the reactor.
Additional work was carried out for the clearing of the site, the demolition of nearby buildings as
well as construction of an “engineering building” for the management and control of all works. Also
a computer-based system was introduced integrating radiation data, information on the structural
integrity of the old shelter, measurements of seismic activities and other parameters important for
the safety on site and for the future operation of the New Safe Confinement (NSC).
A new change facility with a capacity for 1,430 workers has been built which provides medical
screening, training, radiation monitoring, supply of protection equipment as well as an ambulance.
However, these measures would still have not secured the long-term integrity of the structure as
well as site safety. It was then decided to build an additional and major protection structure above
the unit 4. This has been called the NSC.
The entire Shelter Implementation Plan has been financed separately by a new fund (Chernobyl
Shelter Fund) created in 1997 and supported by 44 countries plus the European Union. As with the
other fund, it is administered by EBRD and the project is managed by the Nuclear Safety Account
team.
The word “confinement” is used instead of the traditional “containment” to emphasize the
difference between the “containment” of radioactivity generated in case of an accident, and the
“confinement” of radioactive waste that is the primary purpose of the NSC.
The NSC was designed and is being built by the French consortium Novarka with 50/50 partners
VINCI Construction Grands Projects and Bouygues Travaux Publics. The contract was signed in
August 2007 for an estimated amount of €1.4 billion (US$1.9 billion). Due in particular to the
complexity of the task in a radioactive environment, the budget for completion was increased to
€1.54 billion (US$2.2 billion) in April 2011. It is likely that the final total cost will exceed €1.8 billion
(US$2 billion).
The NSC design is an arch-shaped steel structure that has been designed to cover entirely the
existing sarcophagus (see Figure 31). Requirements included the NSC’s resistance to the impact of
seismic events of a magnitude of level 6, to tornado class 3 and to other heavy winds and snow
loads. The dimensions of the arch were defined based upon the need to operate equipment inside
the NSC and to dismantle the existing “sarcophagus”. A large crane and other remotely controlled
equipment are installed inside and will be used to dismantle the sarcophagus and to attempt to
265 EBRD, “The Chernobyl Shelter Implementation Plan”, Undated, see http://www.ebrd.com/what-wedo/sectors/nuclear-safety/chernobyl-shelter-implementation.html,
accessed 1 July 2016.
266 SSE Chernobyl NPP, “Project ‘New Safe Confinement Construction’”, Undated, see
http://chnpp.gov.ua/en/project-nsc-construction, accessed 1 July 2016.
267 EBRD, “Chernobyl’s New Safe Confinement”, see
http://www.ebrd.com/cs/Satellite?c=Content&cid=1395236547173&d=Default&pagename=EBRD%2FContent%
2FHublet, accessed 1 July 2016.
Mycle Schneider, Antony Froggatt et al. 87 World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2016