French Nuclear Plant Closer to 10-year Extension

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) -- The oldest nuclear power plant in France looks set to get its 10-year lifetime extension following the positive outcome of an inspection by the country's nuclear safety authority, Autorite De Surete Nucleaire (ASN) (Paris, France).

The ASN has set out 40 requirements for the Fessenheim Reactor 1 in eastern France, on the border with Germany, to receive its 10-year extension. Following an inspection last month, the watchdog has announced that the "actions so far taken by the licensee to comply with its requirements are satisfactory". Fessenheim in owned and operated by Electricite de France S.A. (EPA:EDF) (EDF) (Paris, France).

The ASN announced in July 2011 that it would be in favour of extending Fessenheim's operational lifetime as long as it met with the requirements. For additional information, see July 7, 2011, article - French Nuclear Authority Gives Fessenheim Plant 10 More Years.

The key changes required by the regulator include the construction of what it calls the "emergency ultimate heat-sink" facility, an additional emergency cooling system for the reactor. The deadline for the work was the end of last month. The other major requirement concerns the reinforcement of the reactor basemat by an additional 50cm, which should be completed before 30 June 2013. The 1.5-metre-thick basemat must be strengthened to make it more resistant to corium, which is a mixture of molten cladding, fuel and structural steel formed in the event of a serious accident involving the melting of fuel in the reactor. Corium could potentially break through the steel reactor pressure vessel. Last month, the ASN gave its approval for EDF to implement its proposed modifications.

The future of Fessenheim's Reactor 2 will be announced in the first half of 2013. The ASN completed its 10-year maintenance on Reactor 2 last March. Fessenheim has two 880-megawatt (MW) pressurised water reactors, the first of which was commissioned in 1977, followed by Reactor 2 in 1978.

The future of Fessenheim, and many other older nuclear plants in France, is uncertain, following the election of President Francois Hollande last year. Hollande promised in his election campaign to close Fessenheim by 2016 as well reduce the country's reliance on nuclear power from 75% to 50%, by closing 24 plants in the next 13 years.

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