#114 Open Letter to Dr. Bernard Bigot, Director-General of the ITER Organization
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By Steven B. Krivit
Feb. 24, 2022
Dear Dr. Bigot,
I noted with interest your letter today responding to our news story published Feb. 21, 2022, “French Regulator Halts Assembly of ITER Reactor.”
You wrote, “Recently some misinformation has circulated at the initiative of a few well-known anti-hydrogen-fusion activists regarding the status of the ASN (Autorité de sûreté nucléaire) oversight of the ITER project.”
You further wrote, “Contrary to what has been claimed by these anti-ITER fellows using social media, the ASN has not shut down ITER construction.”
New Energy Times first reported this story on Monday. Daniel Clery of Science reported the news today. Clearly, you must be referring to us. But New Energy Times did not say that construction at the ITER site had been shut down. I’m certain that there are lots of construction activities at your site. The focus of our article, as our title says, is a halt of the assembly of the reactor.
You wrote, “There have also been claims that the vacuum vessel sectors were dropped – also false.”
Well, sir, I would kindly direct you to what we reported on Monday:
As New Energy Times reported on Nov. 10, 2021, both of the vacuum vessel sectors that have been delivered to the ITER site were damaged during manufacture. Either the sectors or parts of the sectors (details are unclear) fell at the manufacturing sites and sustained dimensional distortion, according to ASN.
Here’s what we reported three months ago based on the July 2, 2021, ASN ITER Inspection Report #INSSN-MRS-2021-0650:
In the report, the most serious issue identified by the inspectors was that parts of two very large components, sectors of the vacuum vessel, fell during manufacturing and sustained damage. The ASN report does not provide details of the damage.
The report also states that inspectors discovered the forgery of certificates of welder qualifications, found gaps in welds, and detected leaks in cooling tower basins. Inspectors wrote that one of the areas at the reactor construction site was not accessible to them on the day of the inspection. Inspectors also noted unsatisfactory responses to their requests for documents from the ITER organization.
Here are the key parts of what the ASN document INSSN-MRS-2021-0650 says, first in French, then translated to English:
Part 1
Les inspecteurs ont notamment examiné par sondage le traitement des écarts et des modifications ainsi que les suites des chutes d’éléments de secteurs de la chambre à vide lors de leur manutention sur des sites de fabrication en Corée du Sud et en Italie. La découverte de falsification de certificats de qualifications de soudeurs, à la suite d’une information d’alerte de l’ASN, a également fait l’objet de vérifications.
In particular, the inspectors examined on a test basis the treatment of deviations and modifications as well as that the consequences of the falls of elements of sectors of the vacuum chamber during their handling on manufacturing sites in South Korea and Italy. The discovery of forgery of certificates of welder qualifications, following an alert from ASN, was also the subject of checks.
Part 2
Chute d’éléments de secteurs de la chambre à vide: Des éléments de secteurs de la chambre à vide ont chuté lors de manutention sur les sites de fabrication, en Corée du Sud en avril 2021 et en Italie en mai 2021.
Falling elements of sectors of the vacuum chamber: Sectors of the vacuum chamber fell during handling on the manufacturing sites, in South Korea in April 2021 and in Italy in May 2021.
More important is that the ITER Organization accepted delivery of these two damaged sectors more than eight months ago. ASN advised you of the damage eight months ago. In response, you continually asked ASN to accept your alternate installation plan and to release the hold point. ASN has repeatedly declined your request to release the hold. Finally, in a meeting on Jan. 5, 2022, ASN specifically instructed you not to proceed unless you could remove the sectors from the pit.
Your Web site says that insertion of the first sector was to take place in December 2021. So assembly of the reactor vessel has been on hold for two months. And you did not share this information publicly.
As always, we take journalistic integrity seriously and welcome any letter identifying any error of fact or context or any significant omission in New Energy Times.
Kind regards,
Steven B. Krivit
Feb. 28: 2022: ITER Organization Releases Statement
