On the 22nd and 23rd of October MEPhI has been visited by the IAEA delegation headed by the chief of Research Reactor Section, Department of Nuclear Energy IAEA Andrea Borio di Tigliole. It should be noted that the delegation included a graduate of MEPhI, now an employee of the IAEA Anastasia Zhukova. For two days MEPhI became a platform for discussion of issues related to research reactors (RR), subcritical assemblies and their use for research, teaching and training.

This visit was one of the steps to implement the Plan of cooperation with the Agency for the year 2015 and was aimed, in addition to exploring MEPhI potential, at development of proposals for the Plan-2016 and beyond. In their reports IAEA experts provided an overview of Agency activities in the field of research reactors, including a project to improve the level of RR application, infrastructure project, planning and development of RR potential, project for nuclear fuel cycle of RR, project for the operation and maintenance of RR, obligations to ensure RR safety, obligation to ensure the physical protection of the RR. The Russian side, presented by leading experts of Research Reactor IRT MEPhI and research staff of the Department № 5 “Theoretical and experimental physics of nuclear reactors”, told about research and experiments conducted at the MEPhI reactor, about mathematical models and calculated research to provide security and for analysis of possible conversion of the reactor to use low enriched nuclear fuel.

During the visit, the IAEA delegation visited laboratories of the Department №5. Guests noted high level of laboratories’ equipment and their scientific and educational research.

After a technical tour participants discussed plans of cooperation in the area of safeguards. They outlined the main directions of cooperation in the field of personnel training. Also they pre-negotiated and drafted a Cooperation Plan.