France’s Nuclear Shutdown Hits 50% of Reactors, Squeezing Supply



Jesper Starn
Fri, April 29, 2022

(Bloomberg) -- The halt of yet another nuclear unit in France means half of its reactors are now offline for maintenance, keeping power supplies tight in a country that is traditionally one of Europe’s biggest electricity exporters.

Twenty-eight reactors are offline as Electricite de France SA struggles with extended outages after corrosion issues were found at some sites, requiring lengthy checks and repairs. The extra works come on top of already scheduled halts for refueling and regular maintenance, and has brought French nuclear output to the lowest in more than decade for the time of year.

The nuclear fleet is crucial, and can supply more than two thirds of the country’s power, so the halts could potentially worsen Europe’s supply crisis. They’re also having a bigger impact on France’s electricity market than in Germany, which relies more on gas and coal to run plants. France’s daily power prices have averaged about 30% more than in its neighbor this year, and four times higher than in the same period in 2021.

The outages are also affecting the region’s power flows. France imported almost as much as it sent abroad in the first quarter, compared with net exports of roughly 8 terawatt-hours to U.K., Italy, Germany and Switzerland in the same period last year, data from research institute Fraunhofer ISE show.

EDF’s 1,300-megawatt Golfech-2 reactor in the south of France halted earlier on Friday for maintenance until Saturday, the company said in filing with grid operator RTE.