France flags welding fault at five or more EDF nuclear reactors
PARIS (Reuters) - At least five nuclear reactors operated by French utility EDF might have problems with weldings on their steam generators, a fault which has raised fears of closures, France’s nuclear regulator was quoted as saying.
State-controlled EDF, whose shares were down 0.9% on Thursday, had said on Tuesday it had identified issues with weldings of some existing reactors, sparking a stock price fall of nearly 7%.
France has the world’s second-largest fleet of nuclear reactors behind the United States, but a spate of technical problems, coupled with hitches at reactors under construction, has tarnished EDF’s image as a leader in nuclear technology.
EDF has exported to China, Finland, South Africa and South Korea, with Britain also set to use its equipment.
“At least five nuclear reactors are affected by this problem,” Le Figaro newspaper quoted Bernard Doroszczuk, head of the ASN regulator, as saying.
“EDF has advised that in around a week it will give an exact number of facilities affected,” Doroszczuk added.
https://www.montelnews.com/en/story/at-least-5-french-reactors-affected-by-weld-issues--report/1042135
At least 5 French reactors affected by weld issues – report
(Montel) At least five French nuclear reactors are affected by a welding fault in steam generators, the head of France’s ASN nuclear safety authority told French daily Le Figaro late on Wednesday.
"EDF has said it will give more details on the number of components concerned in a about week… so it’s not over,” said Bernard Doroszczuk.
The comments came after operator EDF said on Tuesday that “several” French reactors were affected by substandard welding on some of their steam generators and that it was investigating the matter.
20 generators
The ASN said on Tuesday that “potentially” 20 steam generators were concerned by the faulty welds manufactured by Framatome at its Saint Marcel factory in the south of France since 2008, adding it would release more information in “the coming days”.
An official at France’s IRSN, the technical arm of the ASN, told Montel EDF and Framatome were confident that inspections on steam generators would reveal they were safe.
Steam generators are key components that convert water into steam from heat produced in a reactor core. Each of France’s 58 reactors typically holds between two and four steam generators.
The latest welding problems comes amid concern about other substandard welding at EDF’s new-generation European pressurised reactor (EPR) being built in Flamanville.
https://www.energy-reporters.com/industry/edf-admits-to-reactor-welding-issues-in-france/
EDF admits to reactor welding issues in France
The French state-run electricity provider EDF has admitted to possible weaknesses with components, including improper welding, used in reactors in France.
Shares slumped in EDF, which said Framatome, a company partially owned by EDF that supplies atomic equipment, had reported the issues.
The French Nuclear Safety Authority said around 20 reactors built after 2008 might be affected.
The authority reported that test results appeared to have been falsified and it had alerted prosecutors to possible fraud.
An EDF spokesman said it was too early to say if any of its 58 reactors would close. He said the safety authority had been informed this week.
He added that Framatome said it had not used the same welding technique in all of the reactors.
A factory making steam generators used in nuclear reactors had purportedly failed to follow standard procedures on the welds, EDF said.
The power giant said Framatome warned of “a deviation from technical standards governing the manufacture of nuclear-reactor components”.
“Post-Fukushima, safety rules are so stringent that unplanned halts are becoming more and more frequent,” said Tancrede Fulop, a Morningstar analyst. “That is undermining the nuclear case for a low-cost, base-load production of low-carbon electricity.”
The IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) said last year that 71.7 per cent of France’s electricity came from nuclear sources, the world’s highest proportion.
Framatome’s factory in Saint-Marcel, central France, supplies heavy equipment for the sector, providing components for 106 reactors around the world.
EDF said the problem concerned components already installed in reactors and items being prepared for future installation.
“EDF, along with Framatome, has been conducting in-depth investigations to identify all affected components and reactors, as well as to ascertain their fitness for service,” EDF announced.
In 2016 EDF checked almost a third of its nuclear reactors after finding manufacturing problems in components made by Framatome, then called Areva, at its factory in Creusot.
That forced longer-than-anticipated maintenance outages, reducing EDF’s output.
EDF has recently had to delay the launch a new-generation nuclear reactor. The Flamanville reactor in Normandy is now not due to begin operations until 2022, a decade behind schedule.
The utility is leading the controversial £19.6 billion project to build two similar reactors at Hinkley Point in Somerset on the southwestern English coast. They are due to begin operation in 2025.
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