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China investigates an incident at a nuclear power plant

2021-06-16T23:40:23.603Z


The company that manages the atomic facility admits an "increase in certain foreign gases" but insists that it works "within safety parameters."


By Patrick Smith - NBC News

A Chinese nuclear power plant is investigating unusually high concentrations of gases in one of its reactors, one of its owner companies announced Monday.

Reactor 1 at the Taishan nuclear power plant, located in the Guandong province, north of Hong Kong, experienced an "increase in the concentration of certain foreign gases in the primary circuit," explained the French energy giant EDF, which has a 30% stake in the parent company of the plant.

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"The presence of certain foreign gases in the primary circuit is a known phenomenon, studied and predicted by the operating procedures of the reactors," EDF said in a statement published on its website.

Despite this, the company convened an extraordinary meeting with the shareholders of the Taishan Nuclear Power Joint Venture to decide what the next steps should be taken by the plant.

Framatome, a French company owned by EDF that partially operates the plant, detailed in the statement: "The plant is operating within safety parameters. Our team is working with the appropriate experts to assess the situation and propose solutions to respond to any possible problem ".

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The plant, inaugurated in 2018 after almost 10 years of construction, was the first in the world to install a third-generation European pressurized reactor (EPR), which is now used in facilities in France and the United Kingdom.

Nuclear power is considered a key element of China's dramatic industrial and economic growth.

China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group, which owns 70% of the plant, explained in a statement that the two reactors are operating safely.

"The monitoring data currently shows that the Taishan plant and its surroundings meet normal parameters," the statement said, according to a version translated by Reuters news agency.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in an email that it had not received "any data of a radiological incident" in Taishan.

The agency specified that it is in contact with its Chinese counterpart.

Neither the Chinese Foreign Ministry nor the US National Security Council immediately responded to questions about the incident.

Nuclear safety experts already raised concerns in 2009, shortly after Taishan began operations, that China's rapid leap to nuclear power could create safety problems.

The Taishan construction project was so large that it covered an area equivalent to 245 soccer fields, according to the company's website.

At least 5,600 workers participated in its construction during the busiest days and three million tons of concrete and 230,000 tons of reinforced steel bars were used, the same amount that would be needed to make a railway line between London and Rome.

China has 50 nuclear reactors in operation and another 18 under construction, according to data from the World Nuclear Association.

In contrast, the United States has 93 reactors in use, only two under development, and has closed 40.

Source: telemundo

All news articles on 2021-06-16

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