Drought: EDF had to lower production on one of its nuclear reactors due to the low flow of… – 20 Minutes

EDF had to lower production at one of the nuclear reactors at its Saint-Alban power plant (Isère) due to too low a flow rate from the Rhône, while drought threatens France, we learned on Monday from of the company. The power of one of the two 1,300 MW reactors of the power station (number 1) was lowered to 260 MW “for five hours” on Saturday and “punctual drops (…) were also carried out for a few hours” on Sunday and Monday, the company’s press service told AFP. This in order to “respect the regulations relating to thermal discharges due to the flow of the Rhône”. A serious drought threatens “These maneuvers are carried out in agreement with the manager of the national electricity network and have no consequences on the safety of the installations. “, underlined EDF, specifying that the reactor n ° 2 of the plant continued at full power. Nuclear reactors pump water into rivers or seas to cool them, and discharge heated water, discharges subject to temperature limits to preserve aquatic biodiversity. France is currently at risk of a severe drought, after a particularly hot and dry spring and before a likely equally hot and dry summer, according to Météo France. In April, the latest summary of the situation in the Rhône-Mediterranean hydrological basin from the Eau France information service noted that “the rainfall deficit recorded in recent months has led to overall deficit flows over the entire basin”. in the midst of an early heat wave, a similar power drop had been carried out for a few hours on a reactor at the Blayais power plant (Gironde), on the banks of the Garonne. EDF sometimes reduces the power of its reactors – or even shuts them down – to preserve the temperature of the waterways, but these measures were usually taken during episodes of summer heat waves. France, production losses due to high river temperatures have represented 0.3% of annual nuclear production since 2000. But at a time when President Emmanuel Macron intends to revive the sector, these events have been pointed out by the opponents of nuclear power, like Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who saw in it the questioning of the argument according to which nuclear energy would be more regular than renewables.