27 Apr (NucNet): Spain’s oldest nuclear power unit, the 142-megawatt Jose Cabrera-1, will be permanently shut down by midnight on Sunday 30 April, in line with a decision made by the country’s nuclear regulatory authority in 2002.
The closure was confirmed by the country’s nuclear industry group, Foro Nuclear, which said it would mark the end of 38 years of safe and reliable electricity production by the unit.
Jose Cabrera-1, also known as Zorita, was connected to the grid in 1968 and began commercial operation in 1969. A Westinghouse pressurised water reactor, it was one of Europe’s first nuclear power plant projects.
Foro Nuclear said that “unfortunately, (the plant) will stop producing electricity in the prime of its life,” citing electricity production of 1.16 terawatt hours in 2005 and the absence of operating incidents.
In July 2004, the plant’s operator, utility Union Fenosa, dropped a legal appeal to prevent the unit’s closure. The company had hoped to operate the unit until 2008.
Including Jose Cabrera-1, Spain has nine commercially operational reactors producing about 63 terawatt hours of electricity annually and 24% of the country’s electricity output. The governing Socialist Party said in 2004 it planned to shut down the country’s nuclear power plants in a progressive manner, gradually replacing them with other energy sources.
But earlier this year, the government launched a national debate about nuclear energy with conclusions due by June 2006.
An International Energy Agency report said in October 2005 that Spain’s energy industry faced many challenges, adding: “Spain’s indigenous energy resources are limited, while weak cross-border gas and electricity interconnections and low electricity trade compared to total demand lead to a situation similar to that of an island.” The report said this carried risks for Spain’s security of supply that will become greater with increasing demand for energy.
