Greifswald Nuclear Power Plant
Encyclopedia
The Nuclear power station Greifswald (German
: Kernkraftwerk Greifswald, KGR), also known as nuclear power station Lubmin, was the largest nuclear power station in East Germany before closure shortly after the German reunification
. The plants were of the VVER
-440/V-230 type, which was the first generation of Soviet Union
designed plants. The site is located in Greifswald
in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
Convinced that backfitting to the new safety standards was not economically feasible, the new unified German government decided in early 1991 to decommission the four units, close Unit 5, which was undergoing testing at the time, and halt construction of the rest of the units there plus two VVER-1000s at the Stendal Nuclear Power Plant
.
The district heating
from the plant was made up by oil imports and in 1995 by a new natural gas plant. Decommissioning
of units 1 through 5 began in 1995, making Greifswald one of the first nuclear power stations in Germany to go through the process.
The plant came into focus again in 1996 when it was decided to move 235 unspent fuel assemblies to the Hungarian Paks Nuclear Power Plant
, which could be done since it is of the same design.
At the peak of the plants operation, about 10,000 people were employed full time there. Currently, there are still about 1,000 working on decommissioning and other activities at the site.
Nuclear plants built in the former East Germany
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: Kernkraftwerk Greifswald, KGR), also known as nuclear power station Lubmin, was the largest nuclear power station in East Germany before closure shortly after the German reunification
German reunification
German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...
. The plants were of the VVER
VVER
The VVER, or WWER, is a series of pressurised water reactors originally developed by the Soviet Union, and now Russia, by OKB Gidropress. Power output ranges from 440 MWe to 1200 MWe with the latest Russian development of the design...
-440/V-230 type, which was the first generation of Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
designed plants. The site is located in Greifswald
Greifswald
Greifswald , officially, the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald is a town in northeastern Germany. It is situated in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, at an equal distance of about from Germany's two largest cities, Berlin and Hamburg. The town borders the Baltic Sea, and is crossed...
in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
Closure
In the late 1989 nuclear regulatory bodies of countries operating VVER plants did a safety analysis and produced numerous requirements for backfitting old safety systems, which were stated to have been necessary in almost all areas. All reactors were closed soon after the reunification, with restart conditional on conforming to stricter and very different West Germany safety standards. There was a public discussion about the safety of the power station.Convinced that backfitting to the new safety standards was not economically feasible, the new unified German government decided in early 1991 to decommission the four units, close Unit 5, which was undergoing testing at the time, and halt construction of the rest of the units there plus two VVER-1000s at the Stendal Nuclear Power Plant
Stendal Nuclear Power Plant
The Nuclear power station Stendal was a nuclear power station under construction in East Germany, near the city Arneburg, Stendal in Bezirk Magdeburg, today Saxony-Anhalt....
.
The district heating
District heating
District heating is a system for distributing heat generated in a centralized location for residential and commercial heating requirements such as space heating and water heating...
from the plant was made up by oil imports and in 1995 by a new natural gas plant. Decommissioning
Nuclear decommissioning
Nuclear decommissioning is the dismantling of a nuclear power plant and decontamination of the site to a state no longer requiring protection from radiation for the general public...
of units 1 through 5 began in 1995, making Greifswald one of the first nuclear power stations in Germany to go through the process.
The plant came into focus again in 1996 when it was decided to move 235 unspent fuel assemblies to the Hungarian Paks Nuclear Power Plant
Paks Nuclear Power Plant
The Paks Nuclear Power Plant , located from Paks, central Hungary, is the first and only operating nuclear power station in Hungary. Altogether, its four reactors produce more than 40 percent of the electrical power generated in the country.-Technical parameters:VVER is the Soviet designation for...
, which could be done since it is of the same design.
At the peak of the plants operation, about 10,000 people were employed full time there. Currently, there are still about 1,000 working on decommissioning and other activities at the site.
Incidents
- December 7, 1975 - An electrician wanted to show his apprentice how to bridge electrical circuits. He decided to do a short-circuit on the primary winding on one of the Unit 1 pumps by developing an arc following the edge of a wiring loom. The fire in the main trough destroyed the current supply and the control lines of 5 main coolant pumps (a single unit has 6 pumps). The fire was brought under control fast by the fire-brigade and the pumps could be temporarily repaired since the proper actions were taken immediately. After this near disaster, fire protection within the power station was substantially strengthened and separate electrical lines for each pump were introduced. The case was only released to the public in 1989. A few hours after the incident the IAEA was already informed by Soviet authorities, which classified the accident under INESInternational Nuclear Event ScaleThe International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale was introduced in 1990 by the International Atomic Energy Agency in order to enable prompt communication of safety significance information in case of nuclear accidents....
4, corrected after in INES 3.
- November 24, 1989 - A near core meltdown occurs. It's the fifth and last dangerous incident at the plant. Three out of six cooling water pumps were switched off for a test. A fourth pump broke down and control of the reactor was lost; 10 fuel elements were damaged. The accident was reportedly attributed to sticky relay contacts
Reactor summary
| Unit | Type | Net Power | Total Power | Start of construction |
Finish construction |
Commercial operation |
Shut down |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greifswald - 1 (KGR 1) | WWER-440/230 | 408 MW | 440 MW | 01.03.1970 | 17.12.1973 | 12.07.1974 | 14.02.1990 |
| Greifswald - 2 (KGR 2) | WWER-440/230 | 408 MW | 440 MW | 01.03.1970 | 23.12.1974 | 16.04.1975 | 14.02.1990 |
| Greifswald - 3 (KGR 3) | WWER-440/230 | 408 MW | 440 MW | 01.04.1972 | 24.10.1977 | 01.05.1978 | 28.02.1990 |
| Greifswald - 4 (KGR 4) | WWER-440/230 | 408 MW | 440 MW | 01.04.1972 | 03.09.1979 | 01.11.1979 | 22.07.1990 |
| Greifswald - 5 (KGR 5) | WWER-440/213 | 408 MW | 440 MW | 01.12.1976 | 24.04.1989 | 01.11.1989 | 24.11.1989 |
| Greifswald - 6 (KGR 6) | WWER-440/213 | 408 MW | 440 MW | Finished, never operated | - | - | |
| Greifswald - 7 (KGR 7) | WWER-440/213 | 408 MW | 440 MW | Canceled | - | - | |
| Greifswald - 8 (KGR 8) | WWER-440/213 | 408 MW | 440 MW | Canceled | - | - | |
See also
- Repository for radioactive waste MorslebenRepository for radioactive waste MorslebenThe repository for radioactive waste Morsleben is a deep geological repository for radioactive waste in the rock salt mine Bartensleben in Morsleben, district Börde in the federal state Saxony-Anhalt.-History:...
Nuclear plants built in the former East Germany
- Stendal Nuclear Power PlantStendal Nuclear Power PlantThe Nuclear power station Stendal was a nuclear power station under construction in East Germany, near the city Arneburg, Stendal in Bezirk Magdeburg, today Saxony-Anhalt....
- Rheinsberg Nuclear Power PlantRheinsberg Nuclear Power PlantRheinsberg Nuclear Power Station was the second nuclear reactor in East Germany after the Rossendorf Research Reactor, and the first nuclear power reactor in East Germany. It was built close to the city of Rheinsberg on the Stechlinsee...