A French nuclear power firm said it was working to resolve a performance issue at a nuclear plant in the Chinese province of Guangdong, while the firm’s parent called for a board meeting with its Chinese partners to discuss the matter.
Framatome, a subsidiary of Électricité de France SA, the French power giant, said it was “supporting resolution of a performance issue” with the Taishan nuclear power plant. It said the plant was operating within safety parameters, according to available data. “Our team is working with relevant experts to assess the situation and propose solutions to address any potential issue,” the company said. It didn’t comment further.
EDF and its subsidiary issued separate statements Monday after CNN reported that U.S. officials were assessing a warning from Framatome that Chinese authorities were allowing radiation levels outside the plant to go above acceptable limits to avoid shutting it down.
EDF said it was providing technical expertise regarding the No. 1 reactor of the plant. It said it was aware of the increased concentration of certain gases in the main circuit of the reactor. The presence of such gases is a “known phenomenon, studied and provided for in the reactor operating procedures.” A company spokesman said the issue was the increase in the amount of these gases.
The company didn’t comment further. It said it had asked for an extraordinary board meeting with its partners in the plant to discuss the issue and share data.
The Taishan plant is owned by the Taishan Nuclear Power Joint Venture Co., a joint venture between state-owned China General Nuclear Power Group, which owns 51% and EDF, which owns 30%. Guangdong Energy Group Co. owns 19%.
Taishan Nuclear Power said the plant was operating within safety parameters according to available data, and that environmental indicators at the plant and its surrounding areas were normal.
The plant is located about 80 miles from Hong Kong and 40 miles from Macao. No abnormal radiation has been reported by either Hong Kong or Macao, according to the cities’ observatories.
A U.S. Embassy spokesman in Beijing said he has no comments on the issue. A spokeswoman for French President Emmanuel Macron declined to comment.
“Since the start of commercial operation, Taishan Nuclear Power Plant has controlled the operation of the units in strict accordance with the operating license documents and technical procedures. All operating indicators of both units have met the requirements of nuclear safety regulations and technical specifications of the plant,” it said.
The Taishan plant is the result of the first nuclear electricity generation agreement signed between China and a foreign investor, according to EDF. Construction on the plant began in November 2009 and the first unit started generating power in 2018.
In a statement in April last year, Framatome said plant’s two units were “the world’s most powerful reactors currently in operation.” Nuclear energy accounted for 5% of power generation in China in 2020, according to the China Nuclear Energy Association. The 49 nuclear reactors in operation today have a total capacity of 51 gigawatts.
Write to Chong Koh Ping at [email protected] and Nick Kostov at [email protected]
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