TREATIES AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL ACTS SERIES 12-110 

________________________________________________________________________ 

NUCLEAR SAFETY 

 Arrangement Between the 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

and BULGARIA 

Signed at Rockville and Sofia 

November 21, 2011 and January 10, 2012 

with 

Addenda 
 NOTE BY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE 

 Pursuant to Public Law 89—497, approved July 8, 1966 

(80 Stat. 271; 1 U.S.C. 113)—

“. . .the Treaties and Other International Acts Series issued 

under the authority of the Secretary of State shall be competent 

 evidence . . . of the treaties, international agreements other than 

treaties, and proclamations by the President of such treaties and 

international agreements other than treaties, as the case may be, 

therein contained, in all the courts of law and equity and of maritime 

jurisdiction, and in all the tribunals and public offices of the 

United States, and of the several States, without any further proof 

or authentication thereof.” 
BULGARIA 

Nuclear Safety 

 Arrangement signed at Rockville and Sofia 

 November 21, 2011 and January 10, 2012; 

 Entered into force January 10, 2012. 

 With addenda. 

 
ARRANGEMENT 

BETWEEN 

THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COM-MISSION OF 

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

AND 

THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY AGENCY 

OF THE REPUBLIC OF BULGARIA 

FOR THE 

EXCHANGE OF TECHNICAL INFORMATION 

AND COOPERATION IN NUCLEAR SAFETY 

MATTERS 
ARRANGEMENT 

BETWEEN 

THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

OF THE 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA . AND 

THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY AGENCY 

OF THE REPUBLIC ·OF BULGARiA 

FOR THE EXCHANGE OF TECHNICAL INFORMATION 

AND 

COOPERATION IN NUCLEAR SAFETY MATTERS 

Nuclear Regulatory Agency (hereinafter called the NRA) of the Republic of Bulgaria and 

the Nuclear Regulatory Commission of the United States of America (hereinafter called the 

USNRC), hereinafter referred to as the Parties; 

In recognition of the Agreement between the United States of America and the Republic 

of Bulgaria Concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy, signed at Sofia on June 21,1994; 

Having a mutual interest in a continuing exchange of information pertaining to regulatory 

matters and of standards required or recommended by their organizations for the regulation of 

safety and environmental impact of nuclear facilities; 

Have agreed as follows: 
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I. SCOPE OF THE ARRANGEMENT 

A. Technical Information Exchange 

To the extent that the USNRC and NRA are permitted to do so under the laws, 

regulations, and policy directives of their respective countries, the Parties shall 

exchange, upon either Party's request, the following types of technical information 

relating to the regulation of safety, safeguards, physical security, waste management, 

radiological and environmental impact of designated nuclear facilities and nuclear safety 

research programs: 

1. Topical reports concerning technical safety, safeguards, physical security, waste 

management, radiological and environmental effects written by or for one of the 

Parties as a basis for, or in support of, regulatory decisions and policies. 

2. Documents relating to significant licensing procedures, actions, enforcement, and 

safety and environmental decisions affecting nuclear facilities. 

3. Detailed documents describing the USNRC process for licensing and regulating 

certain U.S. facilities designated by NRA as similar to certain facilities being built 

or planned in Bulgaria, and equivalent documents on such Bulgarian facilities. 

4. Information in the field of reactor safety research, which the Parties have the right 

to disclose, either in the possession of one of the Parties or available to it, 

including light water reactor safety information from the technical areas described 

in Addenda "A" and "S", which are integral parts of this Arrangement. 

Cooperation in these itemized research areas may require a separate 

agreement, as determined to be necessary by the research organizations of one 

or both of the Parties. Each Party shall transmit to the other urgent information 

concerning research results that require early attention in the interest of public 

safety, along with an indication of significant implications. 

5. Reports on operating experience, such as reports on nuclear incidents, accidents 

and shutdowns, and compilations of historical reliability data on components and 

systems. 

6. Regulatory procedures for the safety, safeguards and physical security (materials 

accountancy and control and physical protection), waste management, and 

environmental impact evaluation of nuclear facilities. 

7. Early advice of important events,such as serious operating incidents and 

government-directed reactor shutdowns, that are of immediate interest to the 

Parties. . 

S, Cooperation in Confirmatory Nuclear Safety Research 

The terms of cooperation for joint programs and projects of confirmatory nuclear safety 

research and development or those programs and projects under which activities are 
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divided between the Parties, including the use of test facilities and/or computer programs 

owned by either Party, shall be considered on a case-by-case basis and may be the 

subject of a separate agreement, if determined to be necessary by the research 

organizations of one or both of the Parties. When not the subject of a separate 

agreement, the terms of cooperation may be established by an exc~ange of letters 

between the research organizations of the Parties, and shall be subject to the terms and 

conditions of the present Arrangement. 

Technical areas specified by such exchanges of letters may be modified subsequently 

by mutual consent. Temporary assignments of personnel by one Party in the other 

Party's agency shall also be considered on a case-by-case basis and shall, in general, 

require a separate letter of agreement between the research organizations of the 

Parties. 

c. Training and Assignments 

Within the limits of available resources and subject to the availability of appropriated 

funds, the USNRC shall cooperate with the NRA in providing certain training and 

experience for NRA safety personnel. Unless otherwise agreed, costs of salary, 

allowances, and travel of NRA participants shall be paid by the NRA. The following are 

typical of, but not necessarily restricted to, the kinds of training and experience that may 

be provided: 

1. NRA deSignated inspector accompaniment of USNRC inspectors on reactor 

operation and (if available) reactor construction inspections in the United States, 

including extended briefings at USNRC regional inspection offices. 

i. Participation by NRA employees in USNRC staff training courses. 

3. Assignment of NRA experts for certain periods to be determined by the Parties 

within the USNRC staff to work on USNRC staff duties and gain on the job 

experience. 

4. Training assignments of the NRA within the radiation control program in the 

United States. 

5. Assignment of USNRC experts for a certain period to be determined by the 

Parties within the NRA staff in Bulgaria to assist the NRA experts in working on 

their duties. Cost of salary, allowances, and travel of USNRC experts for the 

entire period shall be paid by USNRC unless otherwise agreed. 

II. ADMINISTRATION 

A. The exchange of information under this Arrangement shall be accomplished through 

letters, reports, and other documents, and by visits and meetings arranged in advance 

on a case-by-case basis. Periodic meetings shall be held at such times as mutually 

agreed to review the exchange of information and cooperation under this Arrangement, 
- 4-

to recommend revisions to the provisions of the Arrangement, and to discuss topics 

coming within the scope of the cooperation. The time, place, and agenda for such 

meetings shall be agreed upon in a~vance. Visits which take place under the 

Arrangement, including their schedules, shall have the prior approval of the 

administrators referred to in paragraph II.B. 

B. An administrator shall be designated by each Party to coordinate its participation in the 

overall exchange under this Arrangement. The administrators shall be the recipients of 

all documents transmitted under the exchange, including copies of all letters unless 

otherwise agreed. Within the terms of the exchange, the administrators will be 

responsible for developing the scope of the exchange, including agreement on the 

designation of the nuclear energy facilities subject to the exchange, and on specific 

documents and standards to be exchanged. One or more technical coordinators may be 

'appointed, as direct contacts for specific disciplinary areas. These technical coordinators 

shall ensure that both administrators receive copies of all transmittals. These detailed 

arrangements are intended to ensure, among other things, that a reasonably balanced 

exchange giving access to equivalent available information is achieved and maintained. 

C. The administrators shall determine the number of copies to be provided of the 

documents exchanged. Each document shall be accompanied by an abstract in English, 

250 words or less, describing its scope and content. 

D. The application or use of any information exchanged or transferred between the Parties 

under this Arrangement shall be the responsibility of the receiving Party, and the' 

transmitting Party does not warrant the suitability of such information for any particular 

use or application. 

E. Recognizing that some information of the type covered in this Arrangement is not 

available within the agencies that are Parties to this Arrangement, but is available from 

other agencies of the governments of the Parties, each Party shall assist the other to the 

maximum extent possible by organizing visits and directing inquiries concerning such 

information to appropriate agencies of the government concerned. The foregoing shall 

not constitute a commitment of other agencies to furnish such information or to receive 

such visitors. 

Ill. EXCHANGE AND USE OF INFORMATION 

A. General 

The Parties support the widest possible dissemination of information provided or 

exchanged under this Arrangement, subject to the reqUirements of each Party's national 

laws, regulations, and policies and the need to protect proprietary and other confidential 

or privileged information, and subject to the provisions of the Intellectual Property 

Addendum, which is an integral part of this Arrangement. 
- 5-

B. Definitions 

1. 

2. 

The term "information" means unclassified nuclear energy-related regulatory 

documents on, safety; security; safeguards; radiological emergencies; waste 

management; legal, scientific, or technical data, including information on results 

or methods of assessment, research, and any other knowledge provided, 

created, or exchanged under this Arrangement. 

The term "proprietary information" means information created or exchanged 

under this Arrangement that contains trade secrets or other privileged or 

·sensitive commercial information (such that the person having the information 

may derive a commercial benefit from it or may have a commercial advantage 

over those who do not have it), and may only include information that: 

a. has been held in confidence by its owner; 

b. has not been transmitted by the owner to other entities (including the 

receiving party) except on the basis that it be held in confidence; 

c. is not otherwise available to the receiving Party from another source 

without restriction on its further dissemination; and 

d. is not already in the possession of the receiving Party. 

3. The term "other confidential or privileged information" means information, other 

than "proprietary information," that has· been transmitted and received in 

confidence under this Arrangement and is protected from public disclosure under 

the laws, regulations, or policies of the country of the party providing the 

information. 

C. Marking Procedures for Documentary Proprietary Information 

A Party receiving documentary proprietary information pursuant to this Arrangement 

shall respect the privileged nature of such information, provided that such proprietary 

information is clearly marked with the following (or substantially similar) restrictive 

legend: 

"This document contains proprietary information furnished in confidence 

under an Arrangement dated [ 1, between the United 

States Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Bulgarian Nuclear 

Regulatory Agency and shall not be disseminated outside these 

organizations, their consultants, contractors, and licensees, or 

concerned departments and agencies of the Government of the United 

States and the Government of Bulgaria, without the prior written 

approval of (name of transmitting Party). This notice shall be marked 

on each page of any reproduction hereof, in whole or in part. These 

limitations shall automatically terminate when the proprietary 

information is disclosed by the owner without restriction." 

This restrictive legend shall be respected by the Parties to this Arrangement. Proprietary 

information bearing this restrictive legend shall not be made public or otherwise 
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disseminated in any manner unspecified or contrary to the terms of thi~ Arrang.ement 

without the prior written consent of the transmitting Party. Proprietary InformatIon 

bearing this restrictive legend shall not be used by the receiving Party or its contractors 

and consultants for any commercial purposes without the prior written consent of the 

transmitting Party. 

D. Dissemination of Documentary Proprietary Information 

1. In general, proprietary information received under this Arrangement may be 

disseminated by the receiving Party without prior consent to persons within or 

employed by the receiving Party, and to concerned Government departments 

and Government agencies. in the country of the receiving Party, provided: 

a. such dissemination is made on a case-by-case basis; and 

b. such proprietary information bears the restrictive legend appearing in 

Section III.C. of this Arrangement. 

2. Proprietary information received u!1der this Arrangement may be disseminated by 

the receiving Party without prior consent to contractors and consultants of the 

receiving Party located within the geographical limits of that Party's country 

provided: 

a. that the proprietary information is used by such contractors and 

consultants only for work within the scope of their contracts with the 

receiving Party relating to the subject matter of the proprietary . 

information, and shall not be used by such contractors and consultants for 

any other private commercial purposes; 

b. that such dissemination is made on a case-by-case basis to contractors 

and consultants who have executed a non-disclosure agreement; and 

c. that such proprietary information shall bear the restrictive legend 

appearing in Section III.C. of this Arrangement. 

3. With the prior written consent of the Party furnishing proprietary information 

under this Arrangement, the receiving Party may disseminate such proprietary 

information more widely than otherwise permitted under the terms set forth in this 

Arrangement: The Parties shall endeavor to grant such approval to the extent 

permitted by their respective national laws, regulations and policies, provided: 

a. that the entities receiving proprietary information under Section 

111.0.3. of this Arrangement, including domestic organizations 

permitted or licensed by the receiving Party to construct or operate 

nuclear production or utilization facilities, or to use nuclear and materials 

radiation sources, have executed a non-disclosure agreement; 
b. 

c. 

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that the entities receiving proprietary information under Section 111.0.3. of 

this Arrangement, including domestic organizations permitted. or licensed 

by the receiving Party to construct or operate nuclear productIon or 

utilization facilities, shall not use such proprietary information for any 

private commercial purposes; and 

that those entities receiving proprietary information under Section 111.0.3. 

of this Arrangement that are domestic organizations permitted or licensed 

by the receiving Party, agree to use the proprietary information only for 

activities carried out under or within the terms of. their specific permit or 

license. 

E. Marking Procedures for Other Confidential or Privileged Information of a Documentary 

Nature 

A Party receiving under this Arrangement other confidential or privileged information 

shall respect its confidential nature, provided such information is clearly marked so as to 

indicate its confidential or privileged nature and is accompanied by a statement 

indicating: 

1. that the information is protected from public disclosure by the government of the 

transmitting· Party; and 

2. that the information is transmitted under the condition that it be maintained in 

confidence. 

F. Dissemination of Other Confidential or Privileged Information of a Documentary Nature 

Other confidential or privileged information may be disseminated ·in the same manner as 

that set forth in Section 111.0, "Dissemination of Documentary Proprietary Information." 

G. Non-Documentary Proprietary or Other Confidential or Privileged Information 

Non-documentary proprietary or other confidential or privileged information provided in 

seminars and other meetings organized under this Arrangement, or information arising 

from the attachments of staff, use of facilities, or joint projects, shall be treated by the 

Parties according to the principles specified for documentary information in this 

Arrangement; provided, however, that the Party communicating such proprietary or other 

confidential or privileged information has placed the recipient on notice as to the 

character of the information communicated. 

H. Consultation 

If, for any reason, one of the Parties becomes aware that it will be, or may reasonably be 

expected to become, unable to meet the non-dissemination provisions of this 

Arrangement, it shall immediately inform the other Party. The Parties shall thereafter 

consult to define an appropriate course of action. 
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I. Other 

Nothing contained in this Arrangement shall preclude a Party from using or . 

disseminating information received without restriction by a Party from sources outside of 

this Arrangement. 

IV. FINAL PROVISIONS 

A. Nothing contained in this Arrangement shall require either Party to take any action that 

would·be inconsistent with its existing laws, regulations, and policy directives. Should 

any conflict arise between the terms of this Arrangement and those laws, regulations, 

and policy directives, the Parties agree to consult before any action is taken. No nuclear 

information related to proliferation-sensitive technologies shall be exchanged under this 

Arrangement. 

B. Unless otherwise agreed, all costs resulting from cooperation pursuant to this 

Arrangement shall be the responsibility of the Party that incurs them. The ability of the 

Parties to carry out their obligations is subject to the appropriation of funds by the 

appropriate governmental authority and to laws and regulations applicable to the Parties. 

C. Cooperation under this Arrangement shall be in accordance with the laws and 

regulations of their respective countries. Any dispute or questions between the Parties 

concerning the interpretation or application of this Arrangement shall be settled by 

mutual agreement of the Parties. 

D. This Arrangement shall enter into force upon signature and, subject to paragraph E of 

this Section, shall remain in force for a period of five years. It may be extended for a 

further period of time by written agreement of the Parties. 

E. Either Party may terminate this Arrangement after providing the other Party written 

notice 180 days prior to its intended date of termination. 

A-1 

Addendum "A" 

NRC-NRA Safety Research Exchange 

Areas in Which the NRC is Performing or Sponsoring Safety Research 

1. Digital Instrumentation and Control 

2. Reactor and Electrical Equipment Qualification 

3. Environmental Transport 

4. Radionuclide Transport and Waste Management 

5. Dry Cask Storage and Transport 

6. Fire Safety Research 

7. Nuclear Fuel Analysis 

8. Severe Accident Analysis 

9. Operating Experience and Generic Issues 

10. Human Factors Engineering 

11. Organizational Factors/Safety Culture 

12. Human Reliability Analysis (HRA) 

13. Probabilistic Risk Assessments 

14. Radiation Protection and Health Effects 

15. Seismic Safety 

16. State of the Art Risk Consequences 

17. Reactor Containment Structural Safety 

18. Reactor Vessel and Piping Integrity 

19. Regulatory Guide Update 

20. New and Advanced Reactor Designs 

21. Decommissioning 

22. Thermal Hydraulic Code Applications and Maintenance 

23. Uncertainty Analysis for Thermal Hydraulic Kinetics 

24. Coupled 3D Neutronic and Plant Thermal Hydraulics 

25. Medical Isotope Production 

26. Long-term Operational Management 

27. Plant and Systems Operations 
B-1 

Addendum liB" 

Areas in Which the NRA. is Performing and Supervising Safety Research 

1. Equipment qualification 

2. Component integrity 

3. Thermodynamics, thermohydraulics, and neutronics of nuclear reactors 

4. Deterministic and probabilistic safety assessment 

5. Beyond design basis and severe accidents 

6. Human factors influence on safety 

7. Seismic safety 

8. Radiation protection 
IPR-1 

Pursuant to Section III of this Arrangement: 

I. General Obligation 

The Parties will ensure adequate and effective protection of intellectual property created or 

furnished under this Arrangement and relevant implementing arrangements. Rights to such 

intellectual property will be allocated as provided in this Addendum. 

II. Scope 

A. This Addendum is applicable to all cooperative activities undertaken pursuant to this 

Arrangement, except as otherwise specifically agreed by the Parties or their 

designees. 

B. For purposes of this Arrangement, "intellectual property" will mean the subject matter 

listed in Article 2 of the Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property 

Organization, done at Stockholm, July 14, 1967, and may include other subject matter 

as agreed by the Parties. 

C. Each Party will ensure, through contracts or other legal means with its own 

participants, if necessary, that the other Party can obtain the rights to intellectual 

property allocated in accordance with this Addendum. This Addendum does not 

otherwise alter or prejudice the allocation between a Party and its nationals, which will 

be determined by that Party's laws and practices. . 

D. Except as otherwise provided in this Arrangement, disputes concerning intellectual 

property arising under this Arrangement will be resolved through discussions between 

the concerned participating institutions, or, if necessary, the Parties or their designees. 

E. Termination or expiration of this Arrangement will not affect rights or obligations under 

this Addendum. 

III. Allocation of Rights 

A. Each Party will be entitled to a non-exclusive, irrevocable, royalty-free license in all 

countries to translate, reproduce, and publicly distribute scientific and technical journal 

articles, reports, and books directly arising from cooperation under this Arrangement. All 

publicly distributed copies of a copyrighted work prepared under this provision will 

indicate the names of the authors of the work unless an author explicitly declines to be 

named. 

B. Rights to all forms of intellectual property, other than those rights described in Section 

III.A above, will be allocated as follows: 

(1) Visiting researchers·will receive rights, awards, bonuses and royalties in accordance 

with the policies of the host institution. 
IPR-2 

(2)(a) Any intellectual property created by persons employed or sponsored by one Party under 

cooperative activities other than those covered by Section III. 8(1) will be owned by that 

Party. Intellectual property created by persons employed or sponsored by both Parties 

will be jointly owned by the Parties. In addition, each creator will be entitled to awards, 

bonuses and royalties in accordance with the policies of the institution employing or 

sponsoring that person. 

(b) Unless otherwise agreed in an implementing or other arrangement, each Party will have 

within its territory a right to exploit or license intellectual property created in the course of 

the cooperative activities. 

(c) The rights of a Party outside its territory will be determined by mutual agreement 

considering the relative contributions of the Parties and their participants to the 

cooperative activities, the degree of commitment in obtaining legal protection· and 

licensing of the intellectual property and such other factors deemed appropriate. 

(d) Notwithstanding Section 1I1.8(2){a) and (b) above, if either Party believes that a particular 

project is likely to lead to or has led to the creation of intellectual property not protected 

by the laws of the other Party, the Parties will immediately hold discussions to determine 

the allocation of rights to the intellectual property. If an agreement cannot be reached 

within three months of the date of the initiation of the discussions, cooperation on the 

project in question will be terminated at the request of either Party. Creators of 

intellectual property will nonetheless be entitled to awardS, bonuses and royalties as 

provided in Section 1I1.8(2)(a). 

(e) For each invention made under any cooperative activity, the Party employing or 

sponsoring the inventor(s) will disclose the invention promptly to the other Party together 

with any documentation and information necessary to enable the other Party to establish 

any rights to which it may be entitled. Either Party may ask the other Party in writing to 

delay publication or public disclosure of such documentation or information for the 

purpose of protecting its rights in the invention. Unless otherwise agreed in writing, the 

delay will not exceed a period of six months from the date of disclosure by the inventing 

Party to the other Party. 

IV. Business Confidential Information 

In the event that information identified in a timely fashion as business-confidential 

is furnished or created under this Arrangement, each Party and its participants will 

protect such information in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and 

administrative practices. Information may be identified as "business-confidential" if 

a person having the information may derive an economic benefit from it or may obtain 

a competitive advantage over those who do not have it, and the information is not 

generally known or publicly available from other sources, and the owner has not 

previously made the information available without imposing in a timely manner an 

obligation to keep it confidential.