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Hinkley Point B nuclear reactor offline now, and will be shut down earlier than planned

EDF confirms Hinkley Point B to be shut down earlier than planned

Cracks in reactor’s graphite core leads to decision to begin process no later than July 2022, Jillian Ambrose Energy correspondent, Fri 20 Nov 2020 .  EDF Energy has confirmed it will begin shutting down the 45-year-old reactors at Hinkley Point B nuclear power plant in Somerset within the next two years, earlier than scheduled.

The “defuelling” will begin no later than July 2022, according to the French energy group.

The shutdown was scheduled for 2023, but cracks were discovered in the graphite core of the reactor.

……..  The power plant, which has been Britain’s most productive and whose operational life was extended, is offline for further inspections and is scheduled to return to service next year, pending approval from Britain’s nuclear safety watchdog…….

EDF had expected the shutdown to take place after the start-up of Hinkley Point C, the first new nuclear power plant being built in the UK in a generation, which was originally due to begin generating electricity “well before 2020”.

However, the scheduled start date has been delayed to between 2025 and 2026 owing to slow progress in agreeing with the government a guaranteed price for the electricity produced……

Boris Johnson’s 10-point climate plan, which was revealed on Tuesday, promised to advance large-scale nuclear projects and the developments of so-called “mini nuclear reactors” with a £525m support package.

But the plan failed to give the greenlight to EDF Energy’s planned followup to the Hinkley Point C project at the Sizewell site, which the firm hopes to build alongside a Chinese nuclear company.

The NIA said it hoped the government provided a clear path towards new nuclear capacity in an energy white paper, which is expected before Christmas. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/nov/19/edf-confirms-hinkley-point-b-to-be-shutdown-earlier-than-planned

 

November 21, 2020 - Posted by | decommission reactor, UK

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