Has the Accreditation Requirement Been Relaxed in the Nuclear Sector?
Official titleDecision of the Nuclear Regulatory Board Dated 6/8/2026 and Numbered 2026-34/2
The Nuclear Regulatory Authority has adopted a decision relaxing the accreditation requirement under certain conditions in cases where no accredited laboratory is available during the testing processes of nuclear facility equipment.
Details of the Regulation
The Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NDK), by its decision dated 6/8/2026 and numbered 2026-34/2, has put its signature to a critical regulation within the scope of the Regulation on Authorizations Regarding Nuclear Facilities. According to the decision, in testing services for equipment to be used in nuclear facilities whose manufacturing takes less than 15 days, the accreditation requirement may not be sought if an accredited laboratory is not available within the supplier's organization.
For this exception to be applicable, two fundamental conditions must be met cumulatively and the application made to the Authority must be deemed appropriate: First, the tests must be performed and reported under the supervision of another organization accredited according to TS EN ISO/IEC 17025 or an equivalent standard that possesses the necessary infrastructure and competence. Second, the test results must fully comply with the values specified in the type test report and the tolerance limits in the manufacturing standard.
This regulation aims to ensure that procurement and testing processes in nuclear facility projects, which are manufactured quickly but delayed due to the lack of accredited laboratories, continue without disruption. The regulation provides flexibility through a supervised independent oversight mechanism without compromising nuclear safety standards.
Questions You Might Have
- Has the accreditation requirement been completely abolished in nuclear facility tests?
- No. It has been relaxed only for equipment whose manufacturing takes less than 15 days and for which no accredited laboratory is available, accompanied by an accredited supervisor and with the approval of the NDK.
- Does this decision jeopardize nuclear safety?
- No, it has been made mandatory for the tests to be conducted under the supervision of another ISO 17025 accredited organization and to comply with tolerances.
Key Terms
- TS EN ISO/IEC 17025
- The international standard for general requirements applied for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories.
- Tip Testi
- A prototype test conducted to verify a product's compliance with designed standards and technical specifications.
- Akreditasyon
- The formal recognition that a laboratory or organization is competent to perform specific tests or conformity assessment tasks.
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REGAS Commentary
This decision aims to overcome bottlenecks experienced in the supply chain of nuclear power plant and facility projects. Although citizens are not directly affected, it is a critical bureaucratic facilitation in terms of the timely and safe completion of nuclear energy and facility projects.