Activities of the SNIP

Basic information

The Slovak Nuclear Insurance Pool (SNIP) is a voluntary association of insurance companies having originated at the Slovak Insurance Association on July 31, 1997 to insure and reinsure nuclear risks.

The core activity of SNIP is to insure or reinsure risks connected with operation of nuclear installations. Pursuant to the Atomic Law (Act No. 541/2004 Coll. on the Peaceful Use of Nuclear Energy), such nuclear installations are not only constructions and operating units containing a nuclear reactor utilising a fission chain reaction, but also facilities for the production, processing, storage and disposal of nuclear materials, repositories of radioactive waste and facilities for the storage of radioactive waste.

Besides the nuclear risks, SNIP also insures sources of ionising radiation. They include medical and industrial sources of ionising radiation like dental RTG devices, computed tomographs, mammographs, etc. The subject of the is the insured´s liability for damage caused by the activity leading to radiation in accordance with the applicable law on radiation protection and on protection, support and development of public health.

At present, SNIP participates in insurance of nuclear power plants all around the world reinsuring foreign pools (more than 220 reinsurance agreements). In Slovakia, it covers insurance of both Slovak nuclear power plants – NPP Jaslovské Bohunice and NPP Mochovce. SNIP also takes part in insurance of completion of the construction of NPP Mochovce units 3 and 4.

The condition for Insurance of nuclear power plants (including the Slovak ones) is to successfully execute surveys provided by international engineer teams. Results and recommendations of the surveys serve not only to insurance purposes, but also for operators of power plants in order to reduce the risk of these nuclear installations.

The Slovak Nuclear Insurance Pool operates within a worldwide community of national nuclear insurance pools and is actively contributing to the development of business and technical co-operation. The business exchange comprises of active (i.e. accepted) and passive (i.e. ceded) reinsurance business with more than twenty foreign national pools. The technical co-operation provides exchange of information, organization of surveys on nuclear power plants, as well as assessment of insured losses based on bilateral co-operation agreements.