France's nuclear safety watchdog ordered Electricite de France (1024251.FR) to halt work on the construction of a new generation nuclear power station in Flamanville, northern France, The Financial Times reports Wednesday, citing the Nuclear Safety Authority's chief inspector.
The NSA said Tuesday it had detected anomalies in the reinforcement of concrete for the new 1,600 megawatt EPR reactor being built in Flamanville. Thomas Houdre, the NSA's chief inspector on the site, said the anomalies posed no threat to safety but "illustrate a lack of rigor in the construction works, which is unacceptable."
The NSA has ordered EDF to prepare an action plan to resolve the quality issues and address continuing weaknesses in the its surveillance of the works and its suppliers.
EDF said it spotted the problems identified by the NSA several days before the order to halt work, precisely because it had responded to earlier NSA demands to reinforce its surveillance systems.