France Should Revisit Plan to Shut Nuclear Units, Says Regulator
- Macron has pledged to halt 12 of EDF’s reactors by 2035
- Recent outages highlight risks to power supply, says ASN chief
Photographer: Balint Porneczi/Bloomberg
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France should reconsider its plan to halt a dozen of Electricite de France SA’s atomic reactors by the middle of the next decade, as recent unplanned outages and an expected increase in electricity demand highlight risks to energy security, the country’s nuclear regulator said.
The warning comes as a natural gas supply crunch, combined with an unusually low availability of EDF’s nuclear plants, stokes supply concerns. High energy costs in France and neighboring countries have forced government to intervene with tax cuts and price caps.