Flamanville power station, illustration.

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Alexis MORIN / SIPA

Scheduled for the end of 2022, the start-up of the Flamanville EPR (Manche) is above all linked to carrying out repairs that must be carried out on the nuclear reactor.

"If all goes well, these weld repairs on the various parts of the secondary circuit of the EPR reactor should be completed in early 2022," said Wednesday the president of the Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN), Bernard Doroszczuk, at the time of a hearing in the Senate.

But "these repairs are on the critical path of the project with regard to EDF's objective of aiming for commissioning by the end of 2022. There is no longer any margin," he said.

Robots for repairs

The welds affair led EDF to announce in 2019 a further delay of at least three years for the EPR, where the loading of nuclear fuel is now expected at the end of 2022. In total, around a hundred welds must be repeated.

For the eight most difficult, the group has particularly favored the use of remotely operated robots, a solution for which ASN has just given the green light.

EDF also recently reported to ASN a design deviation concerning three taps of the main primary circuit of the EPR reactor under construction.

The tapping corresponds to the part of a pipe which connects it to another or to a vessel.

"A solution must be found to strengthen the piping, the tapping, or resume welding," said Bernard Doroszczuk.

"We cannot say whether the repair, in view of the strategy which will be presented by EDF, will allow it to enter into the planning", he warned.

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