Dungeness Power Station
Encyclopedia
Dungeness nuclear power station comprises a pair of nuclear
power station
s located on the Dungeness headland in the south east of Kent
, England.
power station, that was connected to the National Grid in 1965 and has reached the end of its life. It possessed two Nuclear reactors producing 219 MW of electricity each, with a total capacity of 438 MW. The construction was undertaken by a consortium known as The Nuclear Power Group ('TNPG'). The reactors were supplied by TNPG and the turbines by C. A. Parsons & Co.
On 31 December 2006 the A Station ceased power generation. It is anticipated that defuelling will be completed by 2009, the turbine hall demolished in 2010 to be replaced by an intermediate level waste
store in 2014. The waste store and reactor building will then be placed on a care and maintenance basis until 2103, with final site clearance and closure by 2111. Decommissioning is estimated to cost £1.2 billion. An alternative proposal has been made to accelerate cleanup for completion by 2030.
(AGR) power station consisting of two 615 MW reactors, which began operations in 1983 and 1985 respectively. Dungeness B was the first commercial scale AGR power station to be constructed, the design being based on the much smaller Windscale AGR prototype; the WAGR. The £89 million contract was awarded in August 1965 to Atomic Power Construction ('APC'), a consortium backed by Crompton Parkinson
, Fairey Engineering, International Combustion
and Richardsons Westgarth
. The completion date was set as 1970.
During construction, many problems were encountered in scaling up the WAGR design. Problems with the construction of the pressure vessel liner had distorted it such that the boilers, which were to fit in an annular space between the reactor and the pressure vessel, could not be installed, and the liner had to be partially dismantled and re-built. Although the cost of this work was relatively minor at about £200,000, the cost of financing for an extra 18 unproductive months a power station costing around £100 million of which some 60 per cent was already on the ground, was massive. Serious problems with the design of the boilers, which had to withstand the pounding of hot carbon dioxide (CO2), pressurised to 600psi and pumped around the reactor coolant circuit by massive gas circulators, were also discovered, and the casings, hangers and tube supports all had to be redesigned. The cost of these modifications, and financing during the delays, caused severe financial pressures to the consortium and its backers, and in 1969 APC collapsed into administration.
The CEGB
took over project management, issued light penalties in order not to cripple Fairey and International Combustion, and appointed British Nuclear Design and Construction (BNDC) as main contractor. In 1971, problems with corrosion of mild steel components in the first generation Magnox
reactors gave the designers cause for concern. The Dungeness B restraint couplings - mechanical linkages that held the graphite core in place whilst allowing it to expand and contract in response to temperature changes - were made of mild steel and could be subject to the same corrosion. A decision was made to replace them with components made from a new material. In 1972, problems with the use of galvanised wire that was used to attach thermocouples to stainless steel boiler tubes were discovered. During heat treatment of the tubes at temperatures up to 1,050oC, the galvanising zinc diffused into the tubes and made them brittle. The cost had by then risen to £170 million. By 1975, the CEGB was reporting that the power station would not be completed until 1977 and that its cost had risen to £280 million. By 1979 the cost had risen further to £410 million. Reactor 1 first generated power on 3 April 1983, some 13 years behind schedule and at a cost of £685 million, four times the initial estimate in inflation adjusted terms.
Like the "A" station, its turbines were built by C.A. Parsons & Company and it has two 600 MWe turbo-alternator sets, producing a maximum output of 1200 MWe, though net output is 1090 MWe after the effects of house load, and downrating the reactor output due to corrosion and vibration concerns.
In March 2009 Unit B21 was brought down for maintenance; serious problems were found and the reactor was shut down for almost 18 months.
On 24 November 2009 a small fire in the boiler annexe of Unit B22 caused the second reactor to also be shut down. Subsequently Unit B22 has been intermittently offlined for periods of up to several months. Unit B21 was restarted in August 2010. Unplanned shutdowns continued into 2011, with B21 down for repairs from November 2011 to March 2012.
The station's accounting closure date is 2018, 35 years after first power generation. Life-extension options may be considered prior to this date.
, which owns and operates Dungeness B. The government did not include Dungeness C in its draft National Policy Statement published on 9 November 2009, citing environmental reasons and concerns about coastal erosion and associated flood risk. The site was ruled out by Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
Chris Huhne
in October 2010 with the former government's list of eleven potential sites reduced to eight. Despite these environmental concerns local conservative MP Damien Collins, supported by some local residents, has lobbied parliament to reconsider this position. Although with the advent of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan this seems unlikely to happen.
s of the static inverter plant
converting AC
into DC
for transmission on HVDC Cross-Channel
, the high-voltage direct current
power cable carrying electric power across the English Channel
to France. In 1983, a more powerful new inverter
at Sellindge
replaced this facility.
and station B by EDF
through British subsidiary EDF Energy
.
in Europe, measuring 12 km by 6 km, which has been deposited by the sea and built up over thousands of years. The entire area is moving slowly north and east as the sea moves the shingle from one side of the ness to the other. It is surrounded by a nature reserve Site of Special Scientific Interest
(SSSI). A fleet of lorries
is used to continuously maintain shingle sea defences for the plant as coastal erosion
would otherwise move shingle away at an estimated rate of 6 m per year. Around 30,000 cubic metres of shingle are moved each year. It seems that deposition on the north shore of the ness does not keep pace with demand. In all 90,000 cubic metres are moved each year along parts of the coast between Pett Level and Hythe
. This is necessary for the safety of the entire area including the power stations. Approximately 100 million litres of cooling water are extracted and returned to the sea each hour, after being heated 12° Celsius (22 °F).
The relationship of the power stations with the ness in time is important. Geological history places the beginning of the promontory
, some 3000 years ago, as shingle deposits offshore from Pett Level. From there the evidence suggests that the ness enlarged and migrated up Channel to its present position.
Importantly the ness and the coastline between Pett Level and Hythe are volatile. In recorded history Walland Marsh to the west of the power stations has been flooded. In the space of sixty years severe inundation occurred bringing the sea inland to Appledore
and the original mouth of the River Rother
from north of the ness at Romney
to the south at Rye Harbour
. The site is a few metres above Mean Sea Level
and would be isolated in the event of flooding of the magnitude that submerged big areas of East Anglia
and the Netherlands
in 1953
. Conjecture says that the ‘hurricane’ of 1987
did not bring the sea to the stations because there was a low tide at the time. With global warming
, more frequent and powerful storms and their associated waves and surges are possible and might increase the instability of the ness.
Science Fiction
program Doctor Who
serial The Claws of Axos
in 1970.
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
power station
Power station
A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
s located on the Dungeness headland in the south east of Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England.
Dungeness A
Dungeness A is a legacy MagnoxMagnox
Magnox is a now obsolete type of nuclear power reactor which was designed and is still in use in the United Kingdom, and was exported to other countries, both as a power plant, and, when operated accordingly, as a producer of plutonium for nuclear weapons...
power station, that was connected to the National Grid in 1965 and has reached the end of its life. It possessed two Nuclear reactors producing 219 MW of electricity each, with a total capacity of 438 MW. The construction was undertaken by a consortium known as The Nuclear Power Group ('TNPG'). The reactors were supplied by TNPG and the turbines by C. A. Parsons & Co.
On 31 December 2006 the A Station ceased power generation. It is anticipated that defuelling will be completed by 2009, the turbine hall demolished in 2010 to be replaced by an intermediate level waste
Radioactive waste
Radioactive wastes are wastes that contain radioactive material. Radioactive wastes are usually by-products of nuclear power generation and other applications of nuclear fission or nuclear technology, such as research and medicine...
store in 2014. The waste store and reactor building will then be placed on a care and maintenance basis until 2103, with final site clearance and closure by 2111. Decommissioning is estimated to cost £1.2 billion. An alternative proposal has been made to accelerate cleanup for completion by 2030.
Dungeness B
Dungeness B is an advanced gas-cooled reactorAdvanced gas-cooled reactor
An advanced gas-cooled reactor is a type of nuclear reactor. These are the second generation of British gas-cooled reactors, using graphite as the neutron moderator and carbon dioxide as coolant...
(AGR) power station consisting of two 615 MW reactors, which began operations in 1983 and 1985 respectively. Dungeness B was the first commercial scale AGR power station to be constructed, the design being based on the much smaller Windscale AGR prototype; the WAGR. The £89 million contract was awarded in August 1965 to Atomic Power Construction ('APC'), a consortium backed by Crompton Parkinson
Crompton Parkinson
Crompton Parkinson was a British electrical manufacturing company formed in 1927 by the merger of Crompton & Co., and F & A. Parkinson Ltd.Crompton & Co. was a lamp manufacturer founded by Colonel Rookes Evelyn Bell Crompton in 1878 and had designed and installed electric lighting installations at...
, Fairey Engineering, International Combustion
International Combustion
International Combustion Limited was a major manufacturing business based in Derby offering products for the nuclear engineering industry. International Combustion Australia Limited was a separate non-affiliated company.-History:...
and Richardsons Westgarth
Richardsons Westgarth & Company
Richardsons Westgarth & Company was a leading British shipbuilding and marine engineering business. The Company was based in Hartlepool and was a major employer in the area.-History:...
. The completion date was set as 1970.
During construction, many problems were encountered in scaling up the WAGR design. Problems with the construction of the pressure vessel liner had distorted it such that the boilers, which were to fit in an annular space between the reactor and the pressure vessel, could not be installed, and the liner had to be partially dismantled and re-built. Although the cost of this work was relatively minor at about £200,000, the cost of financing for an extra 18 unproductive months a power station costing around £100 million of which some 60 per cent was already on the ground, was massive. Serious problems with the design of the boilers, which had to withstand the pounding of hot carbon dioxide (CO2), pressurised to 600psi and pumped around the reactor coolant circuit by massive gas circulators, were also discovered, and the casings, hangers and tube supports all had to be redesigned. The cost of these modifications, and financing during the delays, caused severe financial pressures to the consortium and its backers, and in 1969 APC collapsed into administration.
The CEGB
CEGB
The Central Electricity Generating Board was the cornerstone of the British electricity industry for almost 40 years; from 1957, to privatisation in the 1990s....
took over project management, issued light penalties in order not to cripple Fairey and International Combustion, and appointed British Nuclear Design and Construction (BNDC) as main contractor. In 1971, problems with corrosion of mild steel components in the first generation Magnox
Magnox
Magnox is a now obsolete type of nuclear power reactor which was designed and is still in use in the United Kingdom, and was exported to other countries, both as a power plant, and, when operated accordingly, as a producer of plutonium for nuclear weapons...
reactors gave the designers cause for concern. The Dungeness B restraint couplings - mechanical linkages that held the graphite core in place whilst allowing it to expand and contract in response to temperature changes - were made of mild steel and could be subject to the same corrosion. A decision was made to replace them with components made from a new material. In 1972, problems with the use of galvanised wire that was used to attach thermocouples to stainless steel boiler tubes were discovered. During heat treatment of the tubes at temperatures up to 1,050oC, the galvanising zinc diffused into the tubes and made them brittle. The cost had by then risen to £170 million. By 1975, the CEGB was reporting that the power station would not be completed until 1977 and that its cost had risen to £280 million. By 1979 the cost had risen further to £410 million. Reactor 1 first generated power on 3 April 1983, some 13 years behind schedule and at a cost of £685 million, four times the initial estimate in inflation adjusted terms.
Like the "A" station, its turbines were built by C.A. Parsons & Company and it has two 600 MWe turbo-alternator sets, producing a maximum output of 1200 MWe, though net output is 1090 MWe after the effects of house load, and downrating the reactor output due to corrosion and vibration concerns.
In March 2009 Unit B21 was brought down for maintenance; serious problems were found and the reactor was shut down for almost 18 months.
On 24 November 2009 a small fire in the boiler annexe of Unit B22 caused the second reactor to also be shut down. Subsequently Unit B22 has been intermittently offlined for periods of up to several months. Unit B21 was restarted in August 2010. Unplanned shutdowns continued into 2011, with B21 down for repairs from November 2011 to March 2012.
The station's accounting closure date is 2018, 35 years after first power generation. Life-extension options may be considered prior to this date.
Consideration of Dungeness C
On 15 April 2009 Dungeness was included in a list of 11 potential sites for new nuclear power stations, at the request of EDF EnergyEDF Energy
EDF Energy is an integrated energy company in the United Kingdom, with operations spanning electricity generation and the sale of gas and electricity to homes and businesses throughout the United Kingdom...
, which owns and operates Dungeness B. The government did not include Dungeness C in its draft National Policy Statement published on 9 November 2009, citing environmental reasons and concerns about coastal erosion and associated flood risk. The site was ruled out by Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change is a British government cabinet position currently held by Chris Huhne. The government department was created on 3 October 2008 when former Prime Minister Gordon Brown reshuffled his cabinet....
Chris Huhne
Chris Huhne
Christopher Murray Paul-Huhne, generally known as Chris Huhne is a British politician and cabinet minister, who is the current Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for the Eastleigh constituency in Hampshire...
in October 2010 with the former government's list of eleven potential sites reduced to eight. Despite these environmental concerns local conservative MP Damien Collins, supported by some local residents, has lobbied parliament to reconsider this position. Although with the advent of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan this seems unlikely to happen.
HVDC station
From 1961 to 1984, Dungeness power station also housed the mercury arc valveMercury arc valve
A mercury-arc valve is a type of electrical rectifier used for converting high-voltage or high-current alternating current into direct current . Rectifiers of this type were used to provide power for industrial motors, electric railways, streetcars, and electric locomotives, as well as for...
s of the static inverter plant
Static inverter plant
A static inverter station, also known as an HVDC Converter Station, is the terminal equipment for a high-voltage direct-current transmission line, in which direct current is converted to three-phase alternating current, and, usually, the reverse...
converting AC
Alternating current
In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. In direct current , the flow of electric charge is only in one direction....
into DC
Direct current
Direct current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...
for transmission on HVDC Cross-Channel
HVDC Cross-Channel
The HVDC Cross-Channel is the high voltage direct current connection that operates under the English Channel between the continental European and British electricity grids.-1961 cable:...
, the high-voltage direct current
High-voltage direct current
A high-voltage, direct current electric power transmission system uses direct current for the bulk transmission of electrical power, in contrast with the more common alternating current systems. For long-distance transmission, HVDC systems may be less expensive and suffer lower electrical losses...
power cable carrying electric power across the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
to France. In 1983, a more powerful new inverter
Inverter (electrical)
An inverter is an electrical device that converts direct current to alternating current ; the converted AC can be at any required voltage and frequency with the use of appropriate transformers, switching, and control circuits....
at Sellindge
Sellindge
Sellindge is a civil parish and village on the A20 road between Ashford and Folkestone in Kent, South East England. Sellindge is part of North Downs West Ward of Shepway District Council but part of the Elham ward of Kent County Council....
replaced this facility.
Ownership
Both stations were originally built, owned, and operated by the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB). Following privatisation of the electricity supply industry and the later part-privatisation of the nuclear power generating industry they are now owned by two different companies: station A by Sellafield Ltd, part of the government-owned BNFLBNFL
British Nuclear Fuels Limited was a nuclear energy and fuels company owned by the UK Government. It was a former manufacturer and transporter of nuclear fuel , ran reactors, generated and sold electricity, reprocessed and managed spent fuel , and decommissioned nuclear plants and other similar...
and station B by EDF
Électricité de France
Électricité de France S.A. is the second largest French utility company. Headquartered in Paris, France, with €65.2 billion in revenues in 2010, EDF operates a diverse portfolio of 120,000+ megawatts of generation capacity in Europe, Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa.EDF is one of...
through British subsidiary EDF Energy
EDF Energy
EDF Energy is an integrated energy company in the United Kingdom, with operations spanning electricity generation and the sale of gas and electricity to homes and businesses throughout the United Kingdom...
.
Location
The stations are built on the largest area of open shingleShingle beach
A shingle beach is a beach which is armoured with pebbles or small- to medium-sized cobbles. Typically, the stone composition may grade from characteristic sizes ranging from two to 200 mm diameter....
in Europe, measuring 12 km by 6 km, which has been deposited by the sea and built up over thousands of years. The entire area is moving slowly north and east as the sea moves the shingle from one side of the ness to the other. It is surrounded by a nature reserve Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
(SSSI). A fleet of lorries
Truck
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, with the smallest being mechanically similar to an automobile...
is used to continuously maintain shingle sea defences for the plant as coastal erosion
Coastal erosion
Coastal erosion is the wearing away of land and the removal of beach or dune sediments by wave action, tidal currents, wave currents, or drainage...
would otherwise move shingle away at an estimated rate of 6 m per year. Around 30,000 cubic metres of shingle are moved each year. It seems that deposition on the north shore of the ness does not keep pace with demand. In all 90,000 cubic metres are moved each year along parts of the coast between Pett Level and Hythe
Hythe, Kent
Hythe , is a small coastal market town on the edge of Romney Marsh, in the District of Shepway on the south coast of Kent. The word Hythe or Hithe is an Old English word meaning Haven or Landing Place....
. This is necessary for the safety of the entire area including the power stations. Approximately 100 million litres of cooling water are extracted and returned to the sea each hour, after being heated 12° Celsius (22 °F).
The relationship of the power stations with the ness in time is important. Geological history places the beginning of the promontory
Promontory
Promontory may refer to:*Promontory, a prominent mass of land which overlooks lower lying land or a body of water*Promontory, Utah, the location where the United States first Transcontinental Railroad was completed...
, some 3000 years ago, as shingle deposits offshore from Pett Level. From there the evidence suggests that the ness enlarged and migrated up Channel to its present position.
Importantly the ness and the coastline between Pett Level and Hythe are volatile. In recorded history Walland Marsh to the west of the power stations has been flooded. In the space of sixty years severe inundation occurred bringing the sea inland to Appledore
Appledore, Kent
Appledore is a village and civil parish in the Ashford District of Kent, England. The village centre is 12 miles south-west of Ashford town, and on the northern edge of the Romney Marsh The northerly part of this village is Appledore Heath....
and the original mouth of the River Rother
River Rother (Eastern)
The River Rother , at 35 miles , is a river flowing through both East Sussex and Kent, England. Its source is near Rotherfield , and its mouth is on Rye Bay, part of the English Channel....
from north of the ness at Romney
New Romney
New Romney is a small town in Kent, England, on the edge of Romney Marsh, an area of flat, rich agricultural land reclaimed from the sea after the harbour began to be silted up. New Romney was once a sea port, with the harbour adjacent to the church, but is now more than a mile from the sea...
to the south at Rye Harbour
Rye Harbour
Rye Harbour is a village located on the East Sussex coast in southeast England, near the estuary of the River Rother: it is part of the civil parish of Icklesham. Rye Harbour is located some two miles downstream of the town of Rye....
. The site is a few metres above Mean Sea Level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
and would be isolated in the event of flooding of the magnitude that submerged big areas of East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
and the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
in 1953
North Sea flood of 1953
The 1953 North Sea flood was a major flood caused by a heavy storm, that occurred on the night of Saturday 31 January 1953 and morning of 1 February 1953. The floods struck the Netherlands, Belgium, England and Scotland.A combination of a high spring tide and a severe European windstorm caused a...
. Conjecture says that the ‘hurricane’ of 1987
Great Storm of 1987
The Great Storm of 1987 occurred on the night of 15/16 October 1987, when an unusually strong weather system caused winds to hit much of southern England and northern France...
did not bring the sea to the stations because there was a low tide at the time. With global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
, more frequent and powerful storms and their associated waves and surges are possible and might increase the instability of the ness.
In the media
The station was used in the filming of the BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Science Fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
program Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
serial The Claws of Axos
The Claws of Axos
-Writing:In late 1969, script editor Terrance Dicks contacted new writing duo Bob Baker and Dave Martin after reading a draft script they had sent around the BBC for another production, A Man's Life. After offering the duo a seven-part story in November 1969 for Doctor Whos eighth season, Baker and...
in 1970.
See also
- Nuclear power in the United KingdomNuclear power in the United KingdomNuclear power currently generates around a sixth of the United Kingdom's electricity. As of 2011, the United Kingdom operates 19 nuclear reactors at nine locations...
- Energy policy of the United KingdomEnergy policy of the United KingdomThe current energy policy of the United Kingdom is set out in the Energy White Paper of May 2007 and Low Carbon Transition Plan of July 2009, building on previous work including the 2003 Energy White Paper and the Energy Review Report in 2006...
- Energy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use in the United Kingdom stood at 3,894.6 kilogrammes of oil equivalent per capita in 2005 compared to a world average of 1,778.0. In 2008, total energy consumed was 9.85 exajoules - around 2% of the estimated 474 EJ worldwide total...
Other sources
- Page 139 also reports the 1990 flooding mentioned above. Page 139 also reports the 1990 flooding mentioned above.
External links
- Dungeness A information pages On the BNG'sBritish Nuclear GroupSellafield Ltd is a nuclear decommissioning Site Licence Company controlled by Nuclear Management Partners Ltd, its designated Parent Body Organisation...
Nuclear Sites web page. - Dungeness B information page From British EnergyBritish EnergyBritish Energy was the UK's largest electricity generation company by volume, before being taken over by Électricité de France in 2009. British Energy operated eight former UK state-owned nuclear power stations and one coal fired power station....
. - Kent Against a Radioactive Environment Local web site opposing the power stations.
- Photographs of Dungeness A From the British Nuclear GroupBritish Nuclear GroupSellafield Ltd is a nuclear decommissioning Site Licence Company controlled by Nuclear Management Partners Ltd, its designated Parent Body Organisation...
image asset library.