Review Article

Supporting infrastructures and research reactors: status, needs and international cooperation, IAEA ICERR (International CEntres based on Research Reactors) and IGORR (International Group on Research Reactors), FP7 and H2020 JHR access rights

¹ Department for Reactor Studies, CEA, Bdg 707, CEA Cadarache, 13108 Cadarache, France
² Nuclear Energy Division, CEA, Bdg 121, CEA Saclay, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France

^* e-mail: jean-yves.blanc@cea.fr

Received: 5 April 2019
Accepted: 4 June 2019
Published online: 5 May 2020

Abstract

The panorama of research reactors in the world is at a turning point, with many old ones being shutdown, a very few new ones under construction and many newcomer countries interested to get access to one or to build one domestic research reactor or zero-power reactor. In this evolving context, several actions have been set up to answer this international collaboration need: the IAEA has launched the ICERR initiative, the OECD/NEA is proposing the P2M joint project proposal. In France, the Jules Horowitz Reactor (JHR), under construction at CEA Cadarache, within an International Consortium, will be one of the few tools available for the industry and research in the next decades. The paper presents some update of its construction, its experimental capacities and the European support through FP7 and H2020 tools. This paper provides also some insights of international tools (ICERR, P2M) and about the International Group on Research Reactors (IGORR) and how they complement or interact with the JHR.