Nuclear Firm Resolving 'performance Issue' At Taishan

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2021-06-14 HKT 15:30

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  • Framatome says that, according to available data, the plant in Taishan is operating within safety parameters. File photo: AFP

    Framatome says that, according to available data, the plant in Taishan is operating within safety parameters. File photo: AFP

A French nuclear firm said on Monday it was working to resolve a "performance issue" at a plant it part-owns in China's southern Guangdong province following a US media report of a potential leak there.

CNN reported earlier that the US government is assessing a report of a leak at the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant after the French company, Framatome, warned of an "imminent radiological threat".

Framatome – a subsidiary of French energy giant EDF – said in a statement tthat it is "supporting resolution of a performance issue" at the plant.

"According to the data available, the plant is operating within the safety parameters," the company said.

EDF later said that there was an "increase in the concentration of certain noble gases in the primary circuit of reactor no. 1" at Taishan, referring to a part of the reactor's cooling system.

Noble gases are elements like argon, helium and neon which have low chemical reactivity.

Their presence in the system "is a known phenomenon, studied and provided for in the reactor operating procedures," EDF said.

The firm added that it had requested an extraordinary meeting of the power plant's board "for management to present all the data and the necessary decisions".

Citing a letter from Framatome to the US energy department, CNN said the warning included an accusation that the Chinese safety authority was raising the acceptable limits for radiation outside the facility in order to avoid having to shut it down.

But a US official told the broadcaster that "the Biden administration believes the facility is not yet at 'crisis level'".

The operator of the power station, state-owned China General Nuclear Power Group, said in a statement on Sunday evening that "the environmental indicators of Taishan Nuclear Power Plant and its surroundings are normal".

It did not reference any leak or incident at the power station, which it said meets "the requirements of nuclear safety regulations and power plant technical specifications."

There was no immediate response to a request for comment from either the Chinese foreign ministry or the Chinese nuclear power group. (AFP)

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Last updated: 2021-06-14 HKT 17:23

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