France Links First New Nuclear Reactor to Grid Since 1999

  • Flamanville-3 had been plagued by delays, cost overruns
  • The reactor is first new addition since Civaux 2 in 1999
EDF's Flamanville nuclear plant.Photographer: Nathan Laine/Bloomberg
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Electricite de France SA connected a new nuclear reactor to the French power grid for the first time in a quarter century on Saturday, adding low-carbon electricity supply at a time when a sputtering economy has made demand sluggish.

The Flamanville-3 reactor — the first such addition since Civaux 2 was connected in 1999 — will join EDF’s fleet of 56 reactors in France, which generate more than two-thirds of the country’s electricity and are the backbone of western Europe’s power system.