Emergency shutdown at Bulgaria nuclear plant after hydrogen leak in cooling system

Monday, April 15, 2013

SOFIA, Bulgaria — Officials say a turbo generator at Bulgaria’s only nuclear power station has been shut down due to a hydrogen leak in its cooling system but insist there is no danger to the public.

A statement Monday from the Kozloduy power plant said the component that was shut down was part of its conventional, non-nuclear unit. It said “there were no changes in the radioactivity level at the plant.”

It was not immediately clear what repairs are necessary at the plant on the Danube River, located 200 kilometres north of the capital Sofia, or when the unit might be back in operation.

The plant has two 1000-megawatt Russia-built nuclear units. Two older 440-megawatt units at the nuclear plant were permanently decommissioned in 2006 because of European Union safety concerns.

Posted in |