Finnish nuclear power plant Olkiluoto receives permission to startup its third unit
The Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority in Finland (STUK) has granted Olkiluoto's propietary company Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO) permission to make the new pressurized water reactor (EPR) Olkiluoto 3 (OL3) critical and conduct low power tests.
According to the finish nuclear regulator STUK, the commissioning tests conducted at Olkiluoto 3 demonstrate that the unit works as planned, and the preconditions for its startup and conducting low power tests are fulfilled. STUK will verify the preparedness for startup at the plant unit before the reactor is made critical.
TVO can now proceed to first criticality, after which the reactor’s power will be gradually increased.
OL3 EPR’s electricity production starts at the end of January 2022. The plant unit will produce electricity with varying power output during the test production phase. Regular electricity production starts in June 2022. Olkiluoto 3 will produce approximately 14% of Finland’s electricity once regular electricity production has started. Through the commissioning of OL3, approximately 30% of Finland's electricity will be generated on the island of Olkiluoto.
Olkiluoto 3 will produce approximately 14% of Finland’s electricity once regular electricity production has started (June 2022)
During the test production phase, the reactor's output can be checked at TVO’s website at www.tvo.fi/ol3forecast.
The unit has been a joint production of Areva GmbH, Areva NP SAS y Siemens AG. Finland has today four nuclear units under operation. In 2020 these reactors produced 34% of the electricity in the country.
Source and cover image: TVO.
