You鈥檇 think it would be the one thing nuclear companies want to be sure about: that their reactors can withstand freak weather or a plane crash.
Yet US firm has so far failed to convince regulators that its AP1000 reactors can withstand such events. 鈥淎t this stage Westinghouse has not presented an adequate safety case for external hazards,鈥� .
This echoes , which said the firm must rethink the 鈥渇undamental engineering standards鈥� of the reactor housing. The US plans to build 14 AP1000s; China four.
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For its nuclear programme, the UK is considering the AP1000 and the European pressurised water reactor (EPR), developed by and . The EPR is the front runner, but its design was also criticised by the HSE.
Kevin Allars of the HSE adds that neither reactor is unsafe and the criticisms are a normal part of the regulatory process. The nuclear companies say they are addressing the problems.
