EnBW's Philippsburg Unit-2 Offline for Maintenance, Systems Upgrade

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

German electricity generator EnBW has reported that Unit-2 of its Philippsburg nuclear power plant has been taken offline for maintenance and technical upgrade.

EnBW has said that extensive inspection and maintenance work will be carried out on the unit, and technical projects will be implemented to ensure that the plant is up to date with the latest technical developments.

The company's ongoing investments and efforts have reportedly resulted in safety levels that comply with the highest international standards, as confirmed repeatedly to EnBW by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

EnBW said that it is planning to increase power output at Unit-2. Individual projects for upgrade include a general overhaul of one low-pressure turbine, pressure and eddy current testing of two steam generators, pressure and ultrasound testing of the reactor pressure vessel, engine inspection of two main cooling water pumps and installation of a new digital plant monitoring systems to replace one of the conventional systems. In addition, 40 of the plant's 193 fuel elements are expected to be replaced.

Horst Janisch, Unit-2's director, said: "We will replace the high-pressure turbine to increase the efficiency of the plant's conventional sector. The new turbine features an optimized design enabling us to achieve higher power outputs while maintaining fuel consumption and safety levels. In addition, its longer maintenance cycles will reduce turbine inspection costs in the future."

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