Many thought they read in the press that the Flamanville EPR had
"finally" started. So let's not exaggerate anything. The Nuclear SafetyAuthority (ASN) authorized commissioning on May 7. Since then, EDF has
loaded the fuel. Before Flamanville produces its first kWh, it still has
to pass the tests, which does not seem to be a foregone conclusion, then
the reactor will be gradually coupled to the network.
The Flamanville saga
This saga has lasted for 20 years: it was in October 2004 that
Flamanville was selected for the implementation of the first EPR in
France. The idea was to replace the old nuclear power plants by 2020.
Preparatory work began in the summer of 2006, and the construction
authorization decree was signed on April 11, 2007. This decree provides
for a period of ten years - i.e. until April 11, 2017 - to carry out the
first fuel loading of the reactor. The first concrete was poured on
December 3, 2007, marking the start of construction, with an expected
construction time of 54 months and commissioning in 2012.
The problems began in 2007: appearance of microcracks in the concrete
making up the foundation of the nuclear island (even though it was not
yet supporting any weight) and non-conformities in the arrangement of
certain iron reinforcements compared to the plans. In 2008, anomalies in
the reinforcement of the raft were detected. Then, defects in the liner
intended to ensure the tightness of the containment enclosure are
detected by the ASN. In 2015, we got into trouble: ASN announced that
Areva had informed it of an anomaly in the composition of the steel in
certain areas of the cover and the bottom of the Flamanville EPR reactor
vessel. . Just that! The president of ASN explains that "despite the
material difficulties in replacing this vessel, it is a feasible option,
because it has not yet been irradiated, the reactor not being in
operation". However, in 2017 ASN authorized EDF to operate the tank. The
cover of the tank will, however, need to be changed by the end of 2024.
So, if we understand correctly, it was possible to change the cover
before it was irradiated, but that's too bad, we prefer to wait until it
is the. We are still on a tank of 425 tonnes, 11 meters high and 5.5
meters in diameter, just to visualize the size of the future waste.
But the worries are not over. In January 2017, "quality deviations" were
noted on 33 welds of the main secondary circuit, ensuring the closed
circuit transfer of the steam produced by the steam generators to the
turbine. These anomalies were discovered in July 2015, and the ASN was
only informed in January 2017. And therefore further postponement of the
loading to 2024, the time to repair the welds in question. Except that
as a result, ASN asks EDF to check the welds of the primary circuit.
Bingo! As it is complex and expensive (we are not talking in thousands
of euros or tens of thousands of euros here), EDF obtains authorization
to carry out a completely new type of treatment. Fingers crossed...
In October 2023, certain fuel assemblies had to be returned to the
sender, presenting the same defects as those responsible for the EPR
failure in China. But hey, they did their empty tests in December, the
ASN authorized them to load the fuel on May 7, and on the 8th, they
started loading.
On May 16, the IRSN involuntarily confirmed information revealed by
Thierry Gadault in Blast: there are excessive vibrations in the
emergency power system of the steam generators, vibrations noted during
the March tests (before the authorization from the ASN therefore). But
the solution proposed by EDF was accepted: measure vibrations more often
(and not try to solve the problem)!
The cost, initially estimated at 3.4 billion euros, was successively
reassessed by EDF to 4 billion in December 2008, then to 5 billion euros
in July 2010, then to 6 billion euros in July 2011, at 8 .5 billion
euros in December 2012, to 10.5 billion euros in September 2015, to 10.9
billion euros in July 2018, to 11 billion euros in October 2018, to 12.4
billion euros euros in October 2019, to 13.2 billion in December 2022.
In July 2020, the Court of Auditors estimated the cost at 19.1 billion
euros. We will move on to the accusation of undeclared work and the use
of labor from Eastern countries.
Playing with our lives
The authorization is an authorization to load the fuel. This is not an
authorization for electricity production and grid coupling. They still
have to do some testing first.
So, we are hesitant about what comes next. Looking at the preceding
saga, we have the greatest doubts about the success of their tests.
There is no reason why it should work better than all the previous
phases of the project, especially since most of the problems have not
been resolved. Judging by the attitude of the ASN, security problems
clearly do not prevent it from giving its authorization. So whatever
misfortunes the trials encounter, it should give the green light for
gradual coupling. We can all the more fear it since it has circulated
throughout the press and that's it, Flamanville had started. Which is
technically wrong.
One might wonder why they take such risks. Because here, we are almost
beyond everything: waiting for a cover to be irradiated to change it,
sealing defects, unresolved welding problems, excessive vibrations (this
is probably the cause of corrosion under constraint which shut down half
of the reactors the previous winter)... But you should know that we are
governed by financiers who have kept the soul of a child, they are
passionate about meccano. And in fact, the European Commission
authorized the takeover of an AREVA subsidiary by EDF (a subsidiary
which brings together the design and supply of nuclear reactors)
subject, among other things, to the favorable conclusions of the ASN on
the Flamanville tests. ...
If we wanted an illustration of the extent to which nuclear capitalism
is deadly and takes all the risks with our lives and our future, it
would be enough to take the example of Flamanville. And this example is
chilling in the current context. They are in fact technically incapable
of achieving the nuclear revival promised by Macron. But they are still
capable of starting installations that do not work and can crash at any
time.
By the way, still according to Blast, the engineers have not yet
succeeded in developing the turbine start-up protocol... And as we have
seen, Thierry Gadault's information often turns out to be reliable.
Sylvie
https://oclibertaire.lautre.net/spip.php?article4226
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