RATU2, research for safety and operability

The Finnish research programme on the structural integrity of nuclear power plants, RATU2 was launched in 1995 for four years to coordinate the independent national research and development work aiming for structural safety in NPP's. The general planning and goal setting of the programme was based on the research need assessment and evaluation of the previous RATU programme. The research plans have been updated and refined annually on the basis of available funding. The RATU2 programme is briefly introduced in this paper. The role of RATU2 in the national nuclear energy research field, the research areas, administrative data, main objectives and future plans are the topics of this presentation. See the following technical papers for the major scientific and technical results, and the last paper in this symposium for a summary of achievements within the RATU2 programme