SA nuclear corporation in hot water over ‘breach of security’

Posted by R.J. Jacob ⋅ July 10, 2012 ⋅ Leave a Comment

Documents show the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation failed to timeously register a ‘breach of security’ at one of its facilities in April with the National Nuclear Regulator

THE South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) failed to timeously register a “breach of security” at one of its facilities in April with the National Nuclear Regulator, according to documents in Business Day’s possession.

Although Necsa did later register the “nuclear occurrence” on June 1, it did not comply with the regulator’s directives, and did not include remedial and corrective actions within the specified time frame. The regulator has taken Necsa to task for its “lack of seriousness and urgency” regarding the incident.

As South Africa looks to ramp up its nuclear programme, nuclear security and safety are in the spotlight, with critics citing these points as key reasons not to develop the nuclear industry in South Africa.