French Nuclear Power Crisis -- about half of its reactors are shut down

[progree]

French Nuclear Power Crisis Frustrates Europe’s Push to Quit Russian Energy, non-paywalled New York Times, 6/18/22
(it's via MSN so no paywall)

... But the industry has tumbled into an unprecedented power crisis as EDF confronts troubles ranging from the mysterious emergence of stress corrosion inside nuclear plants to a hotter climate that is making it harder to cool the aging reactors.

The outages at EDF, Europe’s biggest electricity exporter, have sent France’s nuclear power output tumbling to its lowest level in nearly 30 years,

The company warned last winter that it could no longer produce a steady nuclear power supply, as it struggled to catch up with a two-year backlog in required maintenance for dozens of aging reactors that was put off during coronavirus lockdowns.

Inspections unearthed alarming safety issues — especially corrosion and faulty welding seals on crucial systems used to cool a reactor’s radioactive core. That was the situation at the Chinon atomic plant, one of France’s oldest, which produces 6 percent of EDF’s nuclear power. EDF is now scouring all its nuclear facilities for such problems. A dozen reactors will stay disconnected for corrosion inspections or repairs that could take months or years. Another 16 remain offline for reviews and upgrades.

More: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/french-nuclear-power-crisis-frustrates-europe-s-push-to-quit-russian-energy/ar-AAYBHki

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Nuclear power provides 70% of France's electric power, the biggest such share of any country in the world

Some are having reduced output due to too-warm river water (used for cooling).

Today, French nuclear production is at its lowest level since 1993, generating less than half the 61.4 gigawatts that the fleet is capable of producing.

Problems with the new nukes that EDF is building.

EDF financial problems

I just saw a headline today that much of Western Europe is having an early heat wave.