Friday, August 12, 2022

 

Hot Rivers To Limit French Nuclear Power Output Amid Energy Crisis

Electricite de France SA, France’s state-owned utility, announced on Tuesday that it is highly likely it will be forced to extend cuts to nuclear generation as scorching weather pushes up river temperatures, making the water too hot to cool reactors. 

The French utility says that power stations along the Rhone and Garonne rivers will likely produce less electricity in the coming days, but has promised there will be a minimum level of output to keep the grid stable, Bloomberg reports.  

As Europe’s energy crisis deepens, most of the world’s attention is focused on Germany and gas flows from Russia. However, France is facing an even bigger crisis with Europe’s biggest energy exporter turning into a net importer thanks to the country’s imploding nuclear sector.

deadly heat wave in Western Europe has triggered massive wildfires, displaced thousands of people  and disrupted transportation as the continent grapples with the impact of climate change. According to the national weather forecaster, several areas in France have experienced record-breaking temperatures surpassing 100 degrees Fahrenheit with at least five countries in Europe declaring a state of emergency or red warnings. And now the extreme heat is having an unusual effect: it’s making France’s rivers too hot to be used in nuclear reactors.

Currently, Electricite de France SA is running just 26 of its 57 reactors, with more than half of its chain undergoing emergency maintenance after the discovery of cracked pipes. 

Experts are now saying that France faces an electricity ‘Waterloo’ with atomic reactors generating the lowest share of the country’s power in 30 years, according to Bloomberg

The slump in nuclear availability is forcing France to rely on gas-fired plants more than ever, hydro, intermittent wind and imports. That’s in turn pushing up the cost of electricity in the wholesale market for the entire continent, with French forward prices surging to almost 1,000% above their 10-year average through 2020.

The crisis could get even worse in winter, with high consumption in the winter season likely to make electricity costs catastrophically expensive.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

German Chancellor: Germany Could Keep Nuclear Power Plants Operating After All

Germany’s government has held firmly onto the belief that its nuclear power industry must be retired, even in the midst of an energy crisis. But today, it appears that could change, with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz saying for the first time that the country could put off the retirement of its nuclear power fleet, according to the Wall Street Journal.

“It could make sense” to keep its nuclear power plants operating, Scholz said on Wednesday, despite the current plans to retire the final three plants come December, and despite Germany’s economy and environment ministries in March recommending against extending the life of the reactors.

At the time, the German ministries concluded that extending the life of the nuclear reactors would have a “very limited” impact on alleviating Germany’s power crunch, and that it would come at a “very high economic cost”.

“If someone decides to do so now,”  Scholz said about the potential for building new nuclear power plants as recenly as in June, “they would have to spend 12-18 billion euros on each nuclear power plants and it wouldn’t open until 2037 or 2038. And besides, the fuel rods are generally imported from Russia. As such one should think about what one does.”

Germany has also restarted two power plans that run on oil as the country tries to conserve natural gas as Russian gas flows to Europe continue to be restricted amid an ongoing gas turbine repair situation. Coal-fired plants in Germany have also been resurrected.

Austerity measures have been implemented, with Stadtwerke Munchen reducing swimming pool temperatures and shutting saunas until further notice.

Germany’s plan to phase out nuclear power generation spans decades and was hurried along by the Fukushima disaster.

For now, the German government has commissioned a stress test for nuclear plants, according to the WSJ, to determine if the life of the plants can be extended safely, and whether it will truly aid Germany with its tight energy situation.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

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