As in previous years, the Aachen Institute for Nuclear Training GmbH (AiNT) once again organized the International Conference on Nuclear Decommissioning (ICOND) in 2023; one of the most important industry gatherings in the field of nuclear decommissioning and the disposal of radioactive waste. This year, for the twelfth time, important innovations and current developments were presented and discussed by 33 speakers to more than 280 participants from 16 countries. The focus was not only on professional/technical aspects, but also on social and political aspects. Numerous major specialist companies also took part in ICOND 2023, presenting their products and services in the accompanying exhibition.

In the pre-conference workshop on November 13, 2023, the speakers presented their current products and services for nuclear decommissioning. Innovative and highly sophisticated measurement techniques as well as dismantling, decontamination and treatment processes were clearly presented to the participants.

In November 2022 the 11th ICOND again took place at the Eurogress in Aachen. More than 460 participants and 51 companies presented their products and services in the accompanying exhibition. The biggest ICOND so far.

The pre-conference workshop was dedicated to innovative methods and technologies of radioactive waste and plant characterization, as well as material transport during dismantling. The most modern coating process, cold gas spraying, was also presented. This coating process allows corrosion and wear resistant coatings with high final density, high thermal and electrical conductivity and homogeneity.

The keynote was given by Dr. Cord-Heinrich Lefhalm, Head of Decommissioning Management at RWE Nuclear GmbH with his talk about “Innovations for efficient dismantling “. After he had outlined the decommissioning progress in the RWE fleet, he explained the optimization potential for increasing efficiency on concrete projects. The particular challenges of implementing these optimizations in the industrial nuclear environment were analysed by him and numerous questions were asked from the audience. Peter Berben, Head of ENGIES´s Decision for Decommissioning and Management of Radioactive Waste, gave a status update on the Belgian decommissioning program. Presentations in the thematic block “Strategies and Market Developments” presented VR-supported decommissioning projects, as well as holistic AI-based project planning tools that enable efficiency improvements in decommissioning projects. Subsequently, ongoing projects and lessons learned were presented. Dr. Ralf Versemann (Hochtemperatur - Kernkraftwerk GmbH) presented the experiences after 25 years of safe enclosure of the thorium high-temperature reactor (THTR). Representatives of the Spanish stat-owned company for the decommissioning and disposal of nuclear facilities and waste (ENRESA) vividly presented the entire dismantling of the Jose Cabrera NPP. Tuesday’s grand finale was the Conference Dinner sponsored by ENGIE and EQUANS at Schloss Rahe. After an extensive dinner a DJ created an exuberant party atmosphere.

The dismantling of a reactor building ceiling crane by means of scaffolding, as well as the topics: robotics, cutting and decontamination technologies, as well as the modelling of logistics in the NPP were presented on the second day of the conference in the thematic block “Decommissioning Technologies”. Newly developed tools, such as a mobile attachment for automated crack milling or for cold cutting of nozzles of the reactor pressure vessel were presented. Thierry Delvigne from Syscade opened with his presentation on improved activity determination of waste drums on “Plant and Waste Characterization” and Dr. Bo Cederwall concluded with his presentation of neutron gamma emission tomography. The last day of the conference was opened by Niels Belmans from the SCK CEN Academy on the “EURAD School of Radioactive Waste Management & Release”. Arne Larsson from Cyclife Sweden AB rounded off the topic block "Residual material management & release" with his presentation on the release and recycling of metals into new products, to a coherent overall package.

Proven network formats such as “Business Speed Networking” were also very popular again. At the "Get Together" numerous new business deals and cooperations were initiated in a relaxed atmosphere. As part of the “Exhibitor Road Show”, the exhibiting companies introduced themselves to several small groups within 2 minutes. Students and young professionals established initial contacts with potential future employers in the “Meet your Company”. We were enthused about the positive feedback and are look forward to welcoming you back to the ICOND 2023 (Nov 13^th-16^th 2023) in Aachen.

Anniversary for the ICOND! The 10th ICOND could again take place in October 2021 as a presence event in the Eurogress Aachen. While 37 speakers lectured on market developments and their experiences with international dismantling projects, 45 companies presented their products and services in the fully booked exhibition. Due to the pandemic, there were fewer international participants, but the attendees made good use of the opportunities for new contacts at the proven Business Speed Networking, the Get Together or the Exhibitor Road Show. During the Exhibitor Road Show, participants were guided through the exhibition and the contact persons of the companies presented their decommissioning specific services and products.

The pre-conference workshop focused on the topics of innovative products and process digitalization. Among others, innovative products for laser cutting, laser decontamination, robotics and non-destructive characterization were presented.

The conference was opened by David Peattie, CEO of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority UK, who spoke about current market developments in the UK. How companies are successfully navigating the growing global return market was presented by Dr Jochen Latz of McKinsey & Company, Inc. The presentations by Dr Gabriele Greifeneder of PreussenElektra and Prof. Hartmut Gaßner of the law firm Gassner, Groth, Siederer & Coll. addressed the issue of landfilling cleared radioactive resdues from German NPP decommissioning and rounded off the numerous international contributions.

Due to the Corona pandemic, the 9th edition of ICOND took place in the form of a virtual conference called ICOND DIGITAL 2020.
On the first day, the pre-recorded presentations, which were released in blocks, dealt with the topics of strategies and market developments. Here, Dr. Guido Knott, Managing Director of the largest German operator of nuclear power plants, presented the "Deconstruction Strategy for the Power Plant Fleet of PreussenElektra". In the thematic block "Project status and experience", Bernhard Olm spoke about the "Planning and construction of a dismantling hall for the large components" of EWN. In the cooperation lecture between ORANO and EWN, the "Remotely handled dismantling and packaging of activated waste and core internals" was presented.

The second day focused on digitalization concepts in the context of decommissioning. Various presentations showed the opportunities and optimization potential through the digitalization of decommissioning processes. The second block of the day focused on the latest decontamination processes, such as laser decontamination, among others.
The last day of ICOND DIGITAL 2020 was dedicated to the topic of characterization & waste management, where practical aspects and technical advances were presented on the basis of various projects for the radiological and material characterization of radioactive waste.

The 8th edition of ICOND took place in November 2019 at the Eurogress Aachen in cooperation with ENGIE. More than 370 international participants visited this year´s ICOND and were informed about current market developments by 32 expert speakers. In the accompanying and significantly enlarged exhibition, 48 companies presented their products and services.

The conference was opened by Mr. Henry Cordes, Chairman of the EWN Management Board, with a presentation on EWN´s waste treatment strategies and the planned ESTRAL interim storage. Slightly more than half of the contributions came from abroad, for example Mr. Martin Andreasson from NND presented on the decommissioning planning of nuclear facilities in Norway, while Dr. Cédric Carasco from the CEA in France gave a lecture on techniques currently under development for the characterization of radioactive waste.

Our Business Speed Networking and the ensuing Get Together enabled participants to make new contacts and get in contact with other experts, while the exhibitors were able to present themselves to individually guided groups during an Exhibitor Road Show.

The ICOND 2018 was opened with a key note by Stephan Krüger from PreussenElektra. As the responsible manager for the decommissioning of the company's nuclear power plants, he explained the fleet strategy for optimized dismantling.

The growing number of international contributions shared experiences of foreign participants. For example, the current status of the decommissioning of the nuclear power plant ZION in the USA was the subject of a lecture. In the Pre-Conference Workshop, European participants, supplemented by national presentations, spoke about new technologies in the field of dismantling such as Laser Cutting Technology, Surface Treatment or Measurement Systems.

In addition, there were presentations on project organization and market development. Dr. Jochen Latz of McKinsey & Company focused on market perspectives for the decommissioning of nuclear facilities and relevant success factors to successfully assert oneself internationally in the field of dismantling.

In November 2017, ICOND took place for the sixth time in cooperation with TÜV Rheinland and the Belgian companies TECNUBEL and TRACTEBEL. With 310 participants from nearly twenty nations, the number of participants increased for the third year in a row. More than twenty companies used the fully booked exhibition space in the Eurogress Aachen to present their dismantling-specific products and services to the specialist audience.

ICOND 2017 focused on the reorientation of the nuclear industry due to the nuclear phase-out in Germany. Miss Dr. Ruth Welsing of the law firm Kümmerlein, attorneys and notaries presented the changes by the law on the reorganization of responsibility in nuclear waste disposal adopted in 2017. According to the law, the power plant operators are to be responsible for the entire handling and financing of the areas of decommissioning, dismantling and professional packaging radioactive waste. However, the federal government will be responsible for the "implementation and financing of interim and final storage" in the future. Mr. Wolfgang Honetschläger, responsible for the dismantling projects at EnBW Kernkraft GmbH, spoke about the holistic strategy for the dismantling of EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG. The presented corporate strategy dealt with the following tasks: approval and personnel management, disposal of residues and final disposal preparations. The first decommissioning activities in Neckarwestheim were presented.

The international exchange of experience took place both in plenary sessions, based on initial presentations by participants from Taiwan and Russia, and during the Pre-Conference Workshop, which for the first time focused on the specific features of the decommissioning of nuclear research institutions.