The French nuclear industry is falling behind in trying to get idle reactors up and running in time to avoid power outages and help Europe cope with the loss of supplies from Russia this winter.
Once Europe's largest electricity exporter, France has made matters worse, and Europe's energy crisis could intensify if Electricite de France SA fails to meet its plan to restart a quarter of its nuclear power plants by mid-December. Its recent record doesn't look promising, and grid operator RTE warned that the risk of a shortage is growing in January, Bloomberg reports.
While the state-owned utility has brought in emergency welding crews from the United States and Canada to help fix unexpected cracks in a dozen reactors, the schedule is already well behind the plan set weeks ago.
These problems have made France vulnerable, even though it is less dependent on Russian gas supplies than Germany. The potential spillover effects of France's nuclear-related power shortages are keeping grid operators across the continent on edge in case the European Union's second-largest economy needs additional capacity.
To limit the damage to the economy and prevent social unrest, the administration of President Emmanuel Macron has allocated at least 100 billion euros to help businesses, consumers and government agencies.
As Russia has cut fuel supplies and given EDF's chronic failure to meet maintenance deadlines, France has unveiled ambitious plans to reduce gas and electricity consumption by 10 percent over two years. Efforts include reducing indoor temperatures and lighting everywhere, from public institutions and museums to factories and supermarkets.
With a looming shortage of nuclear power, the government is working on regulatory measures to increase the production capacity of existing hydro and wind power plants and is negotiating an agreement with its German counterparts that could increase its imported capacity.
With 25 of its 56 reactors shut down, EDF's nuclear capacity is about 25 percent below historical levels, pushing local electricity prices even higher than elsewhere in Europe.
According to grid operator RTE, weather-adjusted consumption for the four weeks ending Nov. 13 was down 6.6 percent from pre-pandemic levels, mostly due to reduced use by producers.
Relatively high temperatures and gas reserves in the region have kept things under control, but the real test is coming. Heating homes and offices can consume up to 40 percent of electricity on cold winter days, which are not yet in full force.
EDF normally maintains 40 reactors a year, shutting them down for quick refueling or extended safety checks and upgrades. But the schedule was disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, and then the mess worsened when the company began discovering cracks in pipes in its cooling systems late last year. Worker strikes in October exacerbated the situation.
In May, EDF concluded that pipes at 16 of its 56 French reactors were susceptible to corrosion cracks because of the complex design of its emergency injection systems, while older units were less susceptible. The unexpected results forced the company to shut down a dozen reactors and replace dozens of radioactive pipe parts.
