Flamanville Nuclear Power Plant
| Flamanville Nuclear Power Plant | |
|---|---|
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 Location of Flamanville Nuclear Power Plant in France
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| Official name | Centrale Nucléaire de Flamanville |
| Country | France |
| Location | Flamanville, Manche |
| Coordinates | 49°32′11″N 1°52′54″W / 49.53639°N 1.88167°WCoordinates: 49°32′11″N 1°52′54″W / 49.53639°N 1.88167°W |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction began | 1979 |
| Commission date | December 4, 1985 2019 (Flamanville 3 scheduled) |
| Operator(s) | EDF |
| Nuclear power station | |
| Reactor type |
PWR EPR |
| Reactor supplier |
Framatome Areva |
| Cooling source | English Channel |
| Cooling towers | no |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 2 x 1,382 MW |
| Make and model | Alstom |
| Units under const. | 1 x 1,650 MW |
| Nameplate capacity | 2,764 MW |
| Average generation | 17,917 GWh |
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Website Areva site |
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The Flamanville Nuclear Power Plant is located at Flamanville, Manche, France on the Cotentin Peninsula. The power plant houses two pressurized water reactors (PWRs) that produce 1.3 GWe each and came into service in 1986 and 1987, respectively. It produced 18.9 TWh in 2005, which amounted to 4% of the electricity production in France. In 2006 this figure was about 3.3%.
In 2006, before the start of construction of the EPR (unit 3), there were 671 workers regularly working at the two operational reactors.
The EPR (Flamanville 3) aimed to be safer than any previous reactor, but the project is three times over budget and years behind schedule. Various safety problems have been raised, including weakness in the steel used in the reactor.
Construction on a new reactor, Flamanville 3, began on 4 December 2007. The new unit is an Areva European Pressurized Reactor type and is planned to have a nameplate capacity of 1,650 MWe.
EDF has previously said France's first EPR would cost €3.3 billion and start commercial operations in 2012, after construction lasting 54 months.
On 3 December 2012 EDF announced that the estimated costs have escalated to €8.5 billion ($11 billion), and the completion of construction is delayed to 2016. The next day the Italian power company Enel announced it was relinquishing its 12.5% stake in the project, and 5 future EPRs, so would be reimbursed its project stake of €613 million plus interest.
In November 2014 EDF announced that completion of construction was delayed to 2017 due to delays in component delivery by Areva.
In April 2015 Areva informed the French nuclear regulator, Autorité de sûreté nucléaire (ASN), that anomalies had been detected in the reactor vessel steel, causing "lower than expected mechanical toughness values". Further tests are underway.Segolene Royal, Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy in the Second Valls Government, has asked the producer for further details and possible consequences.
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