Horst-Michael Prasser Will Not Stand Again for Election to the ENSI Board

The ENSI Board published a media release today (Wednesday 2 November 2011) in which it announces that Horst-Michael Prasser will not be standing again for election to the ENSI Board. The Federal Council will elect the new ENSI Board for the next term of office by the end of this year. According to the media release, Prasser cites the Revision of the ENSI Ordinance by the Federal Council on 19 October 2011 as the reason for this decision.

Here is the text of the media release from the ENSI Board:

Horst-Michael Prasser will not stand again for election to the ENSI Board. Prasser, who is Professor of Nuclear Energy Systems at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH Zurich), informed the ENSI Board of his decision on 24 October 2011.

By taking this step, Prasser has accepted the implications of the revision of the ENSI Ordinance by the Federal Council on 19 October 2011. He comments on his move as follows: “I have made a personal decision to take the forthcoming elections as an occasion for me to stand down from the ENSI Board. I shall devote myself fully to my educational and research duties again. Of course, I shall still be glad to place my knowledge at the disposal of the political sphere and society in general, wherever the need arises”.

The ENSI Board learned of Michael Prasser’s decision with regret, and thanks him for the good working relationship. The Federal Council will elect the new ENSI Board by the end of this year.

Michael Prasser has been Full Professor of Nuclear Energy Systems at the ETH Zurich since April 2006, and his work focuses on thermofluid dynamics and the safety of nuclear plants. He also heads the Laboratory for Thermohydraulics at the Paul Scherrer Institute. He has been a member of the ENSI Board since 2008.

The ENSI Board is the strategic and internal supervisory body of the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (ENSI). Its remit includes defining ENSI’s strategic objectives, overseeing ENSI’s management and supervisory activities, and electing the Director and the other members of ENSI’s Executive Board.