Finland's Olkiluoto 3 Nuclear Power Plant Restarted After Maintenance Work - Operator

HELSINKI, (Sputnik) - Test electric power generation resumed at the third power unit of the Olkiluoto Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in Finland at about 230 megawatts with an increase to 800 megawatts by 7 a.m., Johanna Aho, communications manager for the Teollisuuden Voima operator, told Sputnik.

Test power generation was interrupted at noon on August 29.

"Olkiluoto 3 went offline today due to a turbine failure. The cause was a measurement error in the generator voltage regulator. The trial run begins in these very minutes," Aho said.

At 11 p.m., the planned power generation will be 230 megawatts with an increase to 800 megawatts by 7 a.m., which is approximately 60 percent of the capacity, she said.

The NPP was launched on August 8, but already on August 11, it was stopped for maintenance.

At the current stage, the main goal is to subject the station to different tests at different power levels. According to the current production plan, testing at 80 percent capacity will be carried out in September, and testing at full power in early October, Aho said.

The production of electricity from the Olkiluoto 3 NPP is critical for Finland in the perspective of the approaching winter, the cessation of electricity imports from Russia, and the energy crisis in the EU amid sanctions against Russia and its energy carriers.

The commercial operation of Olkiluoto 3 is scheduled to start on December 10. The station's operation is expected to cover approximately 14 percent of Finland's electricity needs.

The Olkiluoto NPP is a nuclear power plant in western Finland. The station is located on the coast of the Gulf of Bothnia of the Baltic Sea on the island of Olkiluoto. The two reactors already in operation produce 16 percent of Finland's energy consumption. In 2002, it was decided to build a third power unit at the station. In 2003, the French group Areva became the construction contractor. The final construction permit was obtained in 2005. The construction cost was estimated at $3 billion but subsequently tripled - to $9 billion.