PARIS: France’s oldest nuclear power reactor will stop electricity production by April 2020, once a new generation EPR reactor under construction in Flamanville is operational, according to a decree issued in the country’s official gazette on Sunday.
The closure of Fessenheim, in northeastern France, was a 2012 electoral promise by French President Francois Hollande, who had promised to curb French dependency on nuclear power by shutting down the reactor during his five-year term, while developing other renewable energy sources.
But this was opposed by workers and executives at plant operator EDF as well as opposition parties and some candidates in the French April-May presidential election.
EDF board members authorized its chief executive to seek a decree from the government to keep Fessenheim open at least until six months before the start-up of the new reactor at the company’s Flamanville site.
“The decree repeals, at the request of the operator, the authorization to operate the Fessenheim nuclear power plant owned by EDF, from date of entry into service of the Flamanville 3 EPR reactor,” the decree said.
It said Flamanville 3 was expected to enter into production by April 2020 at the latest, and so as to respect France’s legal ceiling of 63.2 gigawatts of power from nuclear sources, Fessenheim would have to halt production.
The decree to shut down the 1,800 megawatts Fessenheim plant operated by the state-controlled utility in eastern France, came a few days after the company’s board decided not to vote to immediately halt production.
The decree is in line with the board’s decision that authorized its chief executive to seek government approval to keep Fessenheim open at least until six months before the start-up of Flamanville 3.
France issues decree to close Fessenheim nuclear plant by April 2020
France issues decree to close Fessenheim nuclear plant by April 2020
Two injured in Swiss explosives blast
- The explosion happened at a rural facility used for handling explosives and for fire safety training
- Zurich cantonal police force said: “The explosives, which were supposed to burn, detonated”
ZURICH: Two people were slightly injured and several buildings were damaged Wednesday when the attempted disposal of several hundred kilograms of explosives accidentally sparked a giant blast, Swiss police said.
The explosion happened at a rural facility used for handling explosives and for fire safety training, around 15 kilometers (nine miles) west of Zurich, Switzerland’s biggest city, in the Illnau-Effretikon municipality.
“Shortly after 1:00 p.m. (1200 GMT), a private demolition company began disposing of several hundred kilograms of explosives at the Tatsch test and training facility,” the Zurich cantonal police force said in a statement.
“The explosives, which were supposed to burn, detonated. This created a crater several meters in diameter.
“The shockwave caused significant damage to several buildings and shelters on the site.
“Two employees of the company involved sustained minor injuries and received medical treatment at the scene.”
The police force said it received several reports of damage to buildings in the area beyond the site, but the extent of the damage had yet to be quantified.
Images published by Swiss media showed a white plume of smoke rising above a hilltop, visible from kilometers away.
Other images showed an industrial building with its metal walls ripped off and other buildings with shattered windows.
The police and prosecutors are investigating the exact cause of the accident. Forensic specialists were sent to the scene to secure evidence.
The Swiss Seismological Service, based at the ETH Zurich university, said it detected the explosion at 1:07 p.m. (1207 GMT), at a magnitude of 0.4.
“A clearly audible detonation occurred in the Illnau-Effretikon area, triggering a powerful sound wave,” the municipality said on its website.
“The shockwave caused damage to buildings (broken glass/window panes, loose tiles),” it said, adding: “There is no danger to the public.”
