System Arrangements and Memoranda of Understanding

The GIF has established System Steering Committees to implement the research and development (R&D) for each Generation IV Reactor Concept, with participation from GIF Members interested in contributing to collaborative R&D. Each System Steering Committee plans and integrates R&D projects contributing to the development of a system. The participants in System Committees and in projects, sign agreements governing intellectual property rights and other matters in order to work co-operatively on the concepts. The GIF Charter and the Framework Agreement allow for the participation of organizations from non-GIF countries on all research projects, but not on Systems Steering Committees.

The current System Arrangements in place are set out in the table below. Four System Arrangements have been signed (GFR, SCWR, SFR and VHTR) while for the last two systems LFR and MSR, Memoranda of Understanding have been signed to allow for collaboration until System Arrangements have been put in place.

System Arrangement

Partners
(ranked by country)

Joining Date

Gas-cooled fast reactor system (GFR) JRC (Euratom) November 2006
CEA (France) November 2006
JAEA (Japan) November 2006
PSI (Switzerland)** November 2006
Supercritical-water-cooled reactor system (SCWR) MOST (China) May 2014
NRCan (Canada) November 2006
JRC (Euratom) November 2006
ANRE (Japan) February 2007
ROSATOM
(Russian Federation)

July 2011

Sodium-cooled fast reactor system (SFR) MOST (China) March 2009
JRC (Euratom) November 2006
CEA (France) February 2006
JAEA (Japan) February 2006
MEST (Korea) April 2006
ROSATOM
(Russian Federation)

July 2010

BEIS (UK) January 2019
DOE (USA) February 2006
Very-high-temperature reactor system (VHTR) ANSTO (Australia) December 2017
NRCan (Canada)* November 2006
CAEA (China) October 2008
JRC (Euratom) November 2006
CEA (France) November 2006
JAEA (Japan) November 2006
MEST (Korea) November 2006
PSI (Switzerland) November 2006
BEIS (UK) January 2019
DOE (USA) November 2006

* Canada (NRCan) was a signatory to the VHTR System Arrangement (SA) from 11/2006 to 12/2012.
Since the withdrawal in December 2012, NRCan rejoined the VHTR system by signing the accession to the SA in July 2021.
** Switzerland was a signatory to the GFR System Arrangement from 11/2006 to 11/2015.

Memoranda of Understanding

Partners
(ranked by country)

Joining Date

Lead-cooled fast reactor system (LFR)

INEST (China)

October 2019

JRC (Euratom)

November 2010
CRINES (Japan) November 2010
SNU (Korea) November 2015
ROSATOM 
(Russian Federation)
July 2011
DOE (USA) February 2018
Molten Salt reactor system (MSR) ANSTO (Australia) December 2017
TEI (Canada) April 2019
JRC (Euratom) October 2010
CEA (France) October 2010
ROSATOM 
(Russian Federation)
November 2013
PSI (Switzerland) November 2015
DOE (USA) January 2017