EDF Extends Life for Four U.K. Nuclear Plants

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Électricité de France S.A. (EPA:EDF) (Paris, France) has announced it is extending the lifetime of four of its U.K. nuclear power plants by five to seven years.

The plants, Heysham 1, Heysham 2, Hartlepool and Torness, currently supply electricity to approximately a quarter of all U.K. homes. The company said that scheduled closure dates for Heysham 1 and Hartlepool have been extended by five years to 2024, while those of Heysham 2 and Torness have been extended by seven years to 2030.

Commissioned in 1983, Hartlepool and Heysham 1 have generating capacities of 1,190 megawatts (MW) and 1,160 MW, respectively. Heysham 2 (1,360 MW) and Torness (1,364 MW) were commissioned in 1988. All four plants use Advanced Gas-cooled Reactors (AGRs). They employ 2,000 permanent staff as well as 1,000 contractors, EDF said. The decision to prolong their operational lives comes after "extensive technical and safety reviews of the plants", the results of which have been passed onto the country's independent nuclear regulator, the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR).

EDF Energy Chief Executive Officer Vincent de Rivaz said: "In today's extremely challenging market conditions, our belief that Government policy will be maintained and strengthened gives us the confidence to invest in our nuclear stations. This gives customers the best value low carbon electricity available. Our continuing investment, our expertise and the professional relationship we have with the safety regulator means we can safely prolong the operating life of our nuclear power stations. Their excellent output shows that reliability is improving whilst their safety and environmental performance is higher than ever."

EDF owns and operates seven nuclear plants in the U.K. on which it spends around £600 million ($859 million) per year. EDF said the investment is "paying off" as the plants' combined output last year hit 60.6 terawatt hours (TWh), the highest level for 10 years and 50% higher than in 2008 when EDF acquired the stations.

The company is also planning to build the U.K.'s first new nuclear plant in 25 years--Hinkley Point C--although the company has postponed a final investment decision until later this month. For additional information, see October 23, 2015 article - EDF to Build Hinkley Nuclear Plant in U.K..

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