HELSINKI (Reuters) – Finland’s long overdue and expensive new reactor, Europe’s most powerful in terms of production capacity, has completed more than a year of testing, has begun normal production, and is the power supplier of the Nordic country. greatly increased self-sufficiency.
The 1,600-megawatt Olkiluoto 3 reactor was connected to Finland’s national grid in March 2022 and began normal production on Sunday. The operator, Teollisuuden Voima (TVO), tweeted that “Olkiluoto 3 is complete” after he was 14 years behind schedule from the original plan.
At a time when European countries are cutting off oil, gas and other energy supplies from Finland’s neighbor Russia, a project to help Finland achieve its carbon neutrality goals and enhance energy security.
“The production of Olkiluoto 3 will stabilize electricity prices and play an important role in Finland’s transition to the environment,” TVO president and CEO Jarmo Tanhua said in a statement. The company added that “Europe’s largest nuclear power plant’s power generation is a great complement to clean domestic production.”
Construction of Olkiluoto 3 he started in 2005 and was due to be completed in four years. However, the project was plagued with several technical issues that led to litigation. The last time a new reactor was commissioned in Finland was over 40 years ago.
Olkiluoto 3 is Western Europe’s first new reactor in over 15 years. This is his EPR plant, the first of the new generation (European Pressurized Reactor) connected to the grid in Europe. It was developed as a joint venture between France’s Areva and Germany’s Siemens.
Primarily for safety reasons, nuclear energy remains a controversial issue in Europe. The launch of the Finnish reactor coincides with Germany’s move to close its last three remaining nuclear power plants on Saturday.
Experts estimate the final price of Olkiluoto 3 at around €11 billion (US$12 billion). This is almost three times the original estimate. Finland now has five of his reactors at two of her power plants on the Baltic coast. Together, they cover more than 40% of the country’s electricity demand.
The conservative coalition NCP, which won parliamentary elections in Finland on April 2, wants Finland’s population of 5.5 million to get an even greater share of its energy from nuclear power.
Finland’s candidate for prime minister, his NCP leader Petteriolpo, said during the election campaign that the new cabinet should make nuclear power “a cornerstone of the government’s energy policy.”
