Beznau Nuclear Power Plant
Type: Pressurised water reactor
Start of commercial operations: 1969/1972
Nominal thermal output of each reactor: 1130 MW
Gross electrical output: 380 MWe
Net electrical output: 365 MWe
Click here for NPP Beznau
Type: Pressurised water reactor
Start of commercial operations: 1969/1972
Nominal thermal output of each reactor: 1130 MW
Gross electrical output: 380 MWe
Net electrical output: 365 MWe
Click here for NPP Beznau
The Swiss nuclear power plants use forgings for the safety-relevant main components with fully documented manufacturing and material quality certificates. This was confirmed by the operators in response to an enquiry made by the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (ENSI).
Axpo submitted today a project plan (road map) to ENSI, the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate, outlining procedures for the characterisation and evaluation of the indications in the base material of the Beznau 1 reactor pressure vessel. ENSI will review this plan in collaboration with a group of international experts.
The Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (ENSI) requires the Beznau nuclear power plant to provide proof that the reactor pressure vessel is safe. In an interview, Georg Schwarz, the Director of the Division for Nuclear Power Plants and Deputy Director of the ENSI, explains the importance of carrying out an ultrasonic examination.
The operator Axpo was able to plausibly demonstrate to the ENSI that even if one were to assume that the reactor pressure vessel of Beznau 2 had similar material defects to those in Beznau 1, the safety operation of the reactor pressure vessel is still sufficiently guaranteed.
While carrying out ultrasonic measurements of the reactor pressure vessel of the Beznau 1 nuclear power plant the operator detected flaw indications that require evaluation. It submitted a corresponding report to the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate ENSI yesterday.
The Swiss nuclear power plants (NPP) Beznau and Gösgen are required to perform standardized safety reviews of the base materials in their reactor pressure vessels to check for possible manufacturing flaws. Through this requirement, the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate ENSI is implementing a recommendation issued by the Western European Nuclear Regulators Association (WENRA).