Golfech Nuclear Power Plant
Encyclopedia
The Golfech Nuclear Power Plant is located in the commune of Golfech
(Tarn-et-Garonne
), on the border of Garonne
between Agen
(30 km downstream) and Toulouse
(90 km upstream) on the Garonne River, from where it gets cooling water, and approximately 40 km west of Montauban
.
The station has two operating nuclear reactors that are both pressurized water reactor
s and of the French P'4 design. The plant also has two cooling towers that gets water from the Garonne River, but it only takes water to compensate for evaporation; the cooling loop is closed and water is never released back into the river.
In 2002 the plant produced nearly half of the electricity used in the area. It employs nearly 700 full time workers.
announced intention to construct a nuclear plant near Malause
. EDF then went about securing a site for the station. In 1967 a board of inquiry initially laid out plans for two UNGG reactor
s with an output of 800 MWe each.
During falling petroleum
prices and conflicts between EDF and CEA, the project was delayed to be decided between 1967 and 1969. In 1969 after the departure of Charles de Gaulle
, CEA gave up on the UNGG plans.
In 1973, a nearby hydroelectric plant of 63 MW is finished and the regional manager for EDF announces plans for PWRs at the site to be finished by 1985.
In 1978, EDF announces that Golfech will be the site for 4 PWRs eventually of 1300 MWe each.
On June 17, 1979, 5000 protesters walked on the future site and released balloons.
Golfech
Golfech is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in southern France.It neighbours the larger town of Valence d'Agen and stands on the N113 road between Bordeaux and Toulouse and beside the canal de Garonne and railway that also link the cities...
(Tarn-et-Garonne
Tarn-et-Garonne
Tarn-et-Garonne is a French department in the southwest of France. It is traversed by the Rivers Tarn and Garonne, from which it takes its name.-History:...
), on the border of Garonne
Garonne
The Garonne is a river in southwest France and northern Spain, with a length of .-Source:The Garonne's headwaters are to be found in the Aran Valley in the Pyrenees, though three different locations have been proposed as the true source: the Uelh deth Garona at Plan de Beret , the Ratera-Saboredo...
between Agen
Agen
Agen is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in Aquitaine in south-western France. It lies on the river Garonne southeast of Bordeaux. It is the capital of the department.-Economy:The town has a higher level of unemployment than the national average...
(30 km downstream) and Toulouse
Toulouse
Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
(90 km upstream) on the Garonne River, from where it gets cooling water, and approximately 40 km west of Montauban
Montauban
Montauban is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse....
.
The station has two operating nuclear reactors that are both pressurized water reactor
Pressurized water reactor
Pressurized water reactors constitute a large majority of all western nuclear power plants and are one of three types of light water reactor , the other types being boiling water reactors and supercritical water reactors...
s and of the French P'4 design. The plant also has two cooling towers that gets water from the Garonne River, but it only takes water to compensate for evaporation; the cooling loop is closed and water is never released back into the river.
In 2002 the plant produced nearly half of the electricity used in the area. It employs nearly 700 full time workers.
History
In 1965, the Midi-PyrénéesMidi-Pyrénées
Midi-Pyrénées is the largest region of metropolitan France by area, larger than the Netherlands or Denmark.Midi-Pyrénées has no historical or geographical unity...
announced intention to construct a nuclear plant near Malause
Malause
Malause is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in southern France.-References:*...
. EDF then went about securing a site for the station. In 1967 a board of inquiry initially laid out plans for two UNGG reactor
UNGG reactor
The UNGG is an obsolete design of nuclear power reactor developed by France. It was graphite moderated, cooled by carbon dioxide, and fueled with natural uranium metal....
s with an output of 800 MWe each.
During falling petroleum
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
prices and conflicts between EDF and CEA, the project was delayed to be decided between 1967 and 1969. In 1969 after the departure of Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
, CEA gave up on the UNGG plans.
In 1973, a nearby hydroelectric plant of 63 MW is finished and the regional manager for EDF announces plans for PWRs at the site to be finished by 1985.
In 1978, EDF announces that Golfech will be the site for 4 PWRs eventually of 1300 MWe each.
On June 17, 1979, 5000 protesters walked on the future site and released balloons.
Events
These are all 1 on the INES scale and occurred in 1998.- on September 28 at the time of a check operation of the measuring equipment of the neutron flux in the middle of the reactor, the operator did not respond to one of the signals that should have been investigated.
- on November 4 the Autorité de sûreté nucléaire discovered that on October 14, EDF ran the reactor with an overpower of 7% for 30 hours.
- on November 27 the containment buildingContainment buildingA containment building, in its most common usage, is a steel or reinforced concrete structure enclosing a nuclear reactor. It is designed, in any emergency, to contain the escape of radiation to a maximum pressure in the range of 60 to 200 psi...
is evacuated following the release of an alarm of atmospheric detection of radioactivity. Ten workers are slightly contaminated.