The Halden Project is an internationally funded and staffed nuclear research and development organisation with its headquarters in Halden, Norway. It is operated under the auspices of the OECD and is sponsored financially through an agreement between the Institutt for energiteknikk (IFE), Norway and organisations in 19 different countries. The research programmes at the Halden project are concerned with nuclear fuel and material performance and control room systems development and are structured to answer the needs of member organisations and the nuclear community at large. The demonstrated strength of the Halden project in its main research areas is due, in significant measure, to the characteristics of the dominant Project research tool - the Halding Boiling Water Reactor (HBWR). With its spacious and accessible core, the HBWR is an ideal test bed for complex experimental assemblies requiring large numbers of instrument leads. In addition, the availability of in-core instrumentation and the operational flexibility afforded by the HBWR have greatly aided process control development. The Ha lden Reactor has now become one of the worlds most versatile test reactors. Over the course of this development, som 350 in-pile experiments have been performed. these range in complexity from rudimentary, non-instrumented rod bundles The second major activity at the Halden Project is related to control room development. This area emphasises human factor research and methods and technology development related to computer based control and monitoring of nuclear power plants. A key role is being assumed by the HAMMLAB laboratory, which is now regarded as a reference facility for human factor studies and for advises on control room automation. The organisations participating in the Halden project, and which are actively guiding the Project's research programmes, represent a complete cross section of the nuclear industry, including national research organisations, reactor and fuel vendors, utili ty companies and the licensing and regulatory interests.
