Restart plans for reactor
NUCLEAR power firm British Energy today said it was ready to restart another reactor hit by technical issues.
The company has been dogged by long-term problems at its Hartlepool and Heysham sites, but said a ‘‘comprehensive’’ return to service for Reactor 1 at its Heysham 1 plant was due in the ‘‘coming days’’.
The firm, which is being bought by French giant EDF, has also said it is ready to reopen Reactor 1 at Hartlepool.
Reactors at the two power stations have undergone detailed inspections since problems were discovered in October 2007.
The Heysham 1 go-ahead comes after approval from the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) to return the unit to service. The company also expects to return the second reactor at Heysham 1 and Hartlepool’s Reactor 2 to service in the coming weeks.
The closures followed the discovery of a broken wire on a boiler closure unit - which forms part of the nuclear reactor - leading to engineering modifications.
Last week EDF Energy nominated five of its UK sites, including Hartlepool, to be considered for one of the UK’s new nuclear power stations.
