The Krško Nuclear Power Plant automatically shut down following a 6.4 magnitude earthquake in Petrinja, Croatia, on 29 December. The power plant is located around 80 kilometres from the epicentre of the earthquake that struck Croatia.
The Slovenian national regulatory authority carried out preventive inspections of systems and equipment at the nuclear power plant. They informed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that the safety systems had operated as expected and that detailed inspections had shown no damage to the power plant’s systems and equipment.
Reactor start up procedures were initiated at the Krško nuclear power plant yesterday and the plant was scheduled to resume operations late in the evening.
“We expect the plant to reach 50 per cent capability at night and to operate at full load tomorrow,” read the press statement of the operator, Nuklearna Elektrarna Krško (NEK).
The 700 megawatts (MW) Krško power plant provides more than one-quarter of Slovenia’s and 15 per cent of Croatia’s power. The plant’s operator, Nuklearna Elektrarna Krško is jointly owned by Croatia’s Hrvatska elektroprivreda (HEP Group) and Slovenia’s GEN Energija.
Krško which was built in 1981 was originally planned for decommissioning in 2023. However, the two sides have agreed to extend its retirement by 20 years despite concerns over its old age and the risk of seismic activity in the region.
Photo: Government of Croatia official website.
