IAEA completes safety review of Sri Lanka's nuclear site selection

Sri Lanka identified six potential sites for its inaugural nuclear power plant.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has finished a seven-day safety review of Sri Lanka’s selection process to choose sites where the country could potentially build its first nuclear power plant.

In a statement, the IAEA said that a team of experts conducted a Site and External Events Design Review Service (SEED) mission from 30 May to 5 June, looking into the country’s compliance with the agency’s site selection guidance.

It noted that Sri Lanka has identified six candidate sites from three different regions for its first nuclear plant.

“Sri Lanka is comprehensively screening site-specific external hazards in the site selection process, while following the IAEA safety standards and adopting best practices,” said mission team leader Ayhan Altinyollar, an IAEA Nuclear Safety Officer.

Sri Lanka is now in the next phase which includes the evaluation, comparison and ranking studies of the candidate sites.