Finnish nuclear reactor OL3 delayed again to September by AFP Staff Writers Helsinki (AFP) April 29, 2022 The start of energy production at Finland's long-delayed Olkiluoto 3 nuclear reactor has been postponed from July to September due to repairs, operator TVO said Friday. The French-developed European Pressurised Reactor model was designed to relaunch nuclear power in Europe after the Chernobyl catastrophe of 1986, and was touted as offering higher power and better safety. But EPR projects in Finland, France and the UK have been plagued by delays and cost overruns. The reactor built by the French-led Areva-Siemens consortium on Finland's southwest coast went online in March, 12 years behind schedule. Energy production had been expected to start this summer, with the aim of supplying about 15 percent of Finland's electricity consumption. "Inspection and repair needs concerning the cooling system of OL3's generator will last approximately three weeks", the operator Teollisuuden Voima said in a statement. Unlike the reactor, the generator is located with the huge turbine in the non-nuclear part of the plant, a TVO spokeswoman confirmed to AFP. A separate problem also occurred on Tuesday during the ongoing test phase. During a planned shutdown of the reactor, a safety system controlling the chain reaction with boron was triggered "unexpectedly", but did not pose any danger. TVO said Friday the repairs of the cooling systems "are not related" to the incident concerning the boron pumps.
UN watchdog 'concerned' about Ukraine nuclear plant access Vienna (AFP) April 28, 2022 UN nuclear watchdog head Rafael Grossi expressed "concern" Thursday about not having been able to access Europe's largest nuclear plant in Ukraine since Russia seized it almost two months ago. Russian forces captured the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine on March 4, sparking alarm when shelling caused a fire at a training facility. They also seized the now-defunct Chernobyl plant right at the beginning of their invasion of Ukraine on February 24, though they have since retreat ... read more
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