The Olkiluoto 3 EPR reactor completes a decisive stage of its commissioning. The Finnish safety authority (STUK) has authorized the fuel load for the Olkiluoto 3 EPR reactor. Loading operations led by plant operator TVO, with the support from AREVA and Framatome, can begin.

"Fuel loading is a major milestone for the project. Reaching this milestone illustrates the expertise and know-how of our teams," said Bernard Fontana, CEO of Framatome. "Framatome's teams are fully mobilized alongside AREVA and TVO to finalize and deliver the nuclear power plant while meeting the highest safety and security standards. I thank them for their engagement."

To carry out the loading operations, an integrated team made up of approximately 40 employees from TVO, AREVA and Framatome has been formed. It includes around 15 fuel handlers, employees specializing in the fuel handling operations, and four neutronics engineers in charge of monitoring the core during loading.

A total of 241 fuel assemblies manufactured in Framatome's plants in Germany and in France will be loaded in the reactor vessel to constitute the first core.

The Areva NP and Areva NP GmbH Olkiluoto 3 project teams, who will later join Framatome, are supported by over 110 Framatome employees permanently based on the site, and by Framatome engineering teams located in France and in Germany.

Completion of the fuel loading will be followed by a new series of hot functional tests before the first criticality and commissioning for commercial operation. Framatome teams will be involved during the ramping up phase of the reactor. Once the reactor is in service, Framatome teams will contribute to the maintenance of the Olkiluoto 3 reactor under a long-term service contract signed between Framatome and TVO in late 2019. They will be supported by the new subsidiary, Framatome Finland, created in 2019.

Related Links
Framatome
Nuclear Power News - Nuclear Science, Nuclear Technology
Powering The World in the 21st Century at Energy-Daily.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Detecting nuclear power pollution separate from global fall out
Lancaster UK (SPX) Mar 19, 2021
Researchers looking at miniscule levels of plutonium pollution in our soils have made a breakthrough which could help inform future 'clean up' operations on land around nuclear power plants, saving time and money. Publishing in the journal Nature Communications, researchers show how they have measured the previously 'unmeasurable' and taken a step forward in differentiating between local and global sources of plutonium pollution in the soil. By identifying the isotopic 'fingerprint' of trace ... read more