Spanish, Moroccan regulators enhance cooperation

Spain's Nuclear Safety Council (Consejo de Seguridad Nuclear, CSN) and the Moroccan Nuclear and Radiological Safety and Security Agency (AMSSNuR) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on increased collaboration.

The signing of the MoU in Rabat (Image: CSN)

The CSN said that although Spain and Morocco have had regular contact for more than the past ten years on matters related to nuclear regulation, no cooperation agreement has previously been signed between them. This, it said, was due to the "absence of a single regulatory body".

In January 2011, the Moroccan government approved plans to set up a nuclear safety agency and draft a law on nuclear security. AMSSNuR was created in 2016 as an independent regulatory body.

The plenary of the CSN approved the text of the MoU, which establishes a framework for the bilateral exchange of information, at its meeting last week.

The MoU was signed by CSN President Fernando Marti and AMSSNuR Director General Khammar Mrabit on 15 January at the offices of the Moroccan Ministry of Energy and Mines in Rabat.

The agreement has an initial duration of five years and includes the exchange of information on nuclear safety and regulation. The MoU includes aspects such as operational experience and lessons learned from nuclear accidents, emergency response and communication in accident situations, the reduction of risk of severe accidents and the mitigation of their consequence, and research and development.

Morocco has a 2 MW Triga research reactor under construction at Mamoura near Rabat and has previously considered the introduction of nuclear energy.

Researched and writtenby World Nuclear News