Taishan Nuclear Plant Started Up In Secret: Report

The Taishan nuclear power plant in Guangdong province, around 130 kilometres from Hong Kong, has reportedly been started up in secret, despite problems flagged up in a safety inspection just days before.

Hong Kong news agency FactWire said on Monday that data from the International Atomic Energy Agency shows that the reactor at the plant's Unit 1 reached first criticality, the point at which a nuclear reaction begins, on June 6. No announcement of the start-up was made.

Just one week before, the mainland's National Nuclear Safety Administration (NNSA) identified six major issues at the plant, FactWire said, such as equipment malfunction including the failure of reactor monitoring systems, and human error in responding to false alarms.

It said the NNSA had called for increased training for operating staff in order to minimise human error, but no timetable was given.

The agency said satellite images taken in the past week or so suggest the plant's cooling system, which makes use of seawater, is now in operation.

Late last year, FactWire also reported that cracks had been found in important components of the reactor.

China is the third country along with France and Finland to build a nuclear plant using European Pressurised Reactors. But with construction setbacks in the two European countries, Taishan is the first plant of its kind to go into operation.