The restart of Liège reactor, Tihange 2, has been delayed another day due to ongoing safety concerns.
The reactor, which has been closed since last August, will now restart on Tuesday night according to a spokesperson for energy supplier Engie.
"When restarting a reactor, which has been shut down for a while, many tests and checks must be carried out, which we are busy doing. We are doing everything necessary to start the reactor safely," said the spokesperson.
The initial plan was to restart Tihange 2 on Saturday night, however the operation was postponed to Sunday evening, then Monday night, and now the agreed time is Tuesday at 23:00.
During the reactor’s planned shutdown for maintenance, it was discovered that the concrete in the bunker’s steam exhaust room was damaged, due to continual exposure to warm and wet conditions. The damaged areas had to be repaired, as previously reported.
An anomaly was then found in the positioning and dimensions of parts of the concrete reinforcement in the building’s ceiling. It was, therefore, necessary to repair the bunker by placing an additional roof structure.
Madeleine Fletcher
The Brussels Times
