reu-2018-08-04 nuclear reactors halted heatwave France
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-nuclearpower-weather/frances-edf-halts-four-nuclear-reactors-due-to-heatwave-idUSKBN1KP0ES?il=0
France's EDF halts four nuclear reactors due to heatwave
Reuters Staff
PARIS (Reuters) - EDF has halted four nuclear reactors at three power
plants in France because of the current heatwave affecting Europe, a
spokesman for the utility said on Saturday.
High temperatures registered in the Rhone and Rhine rivers, from which
the three power plants pump their water for cooling, led to a temporary
shutdown of the reactors, the spokesman said.
Two of the halted reactors belong to EDF's Bugey plant, one is located at
St. Alban and one in Fessenheim near the German border.
France, like much of Europe, is experiencing scorching weather in its
southern regions, with forecasts showing temperatures reaching 37 degrees
Celsius (98.6°F) in the Rhone valley.
Temperatures were near record highs on Friday in Spain and Portugal and
will remain above 40 degrees Celsius at least until Sunday.
EDF's nuclear plants along the Rhone and the Rhine use the rivers' waters
to regulate the temperature of their reactors, discharging warm water
back into the waterway.
Curbs are placed on the volume of water its plants can use as the rivers'
temperatures rise.
Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain and Simon Carraud; editing by Jason Neely