8 Apr (NucNet): Finnish utility Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO) will replace a number of defective fuel rods which have been found in the 880-megawatt Olkiluoto-1 boiling water reactor (BWR) unit, the company said in a statement today.
Preliminary inspections show that at this stage three fuel assemblies need to be removed and replaced because of the defective fuel rods, TVO said.
There are 500 fuel assemblies in the reactor core and each assembly has almost 100 fuel rods, TVO said.
The company said the operation will begin on 11 April and will take about one week, during which the plant will be offline.
According to TVO, the defective rods have released radioactive substances into the reactor’s water, but there is no danger to the environment.
There are three units at the Olkiluoto site in western Finland – two BWRs in commercial operation and one EPR under construction.
