Unit 3 of Cattenom Nuclear Power Plant in France Shut Down for Major Overhaul
en.Wedoany.com Reported - Électricité de France's Cattenom Nuclear Power Operations Center (EDF-CNPE) announced that Unit 3 of the Cattenom Nuclear Power Plant, located in the Moselle department of the Grand Est region of France, was officially disconnected from the grid and shut down on the night of September 26 (Saturday), transitioning to a preventive maintenance overhaul phase as scheduled.
During this planned overhaul, engineers will complete the unloading of one-third of the reactor core's nuclear fuel assemblies and the loading of new fuel, and comprehensively carry out nearly 4,500 specialized maintenance and statutory inspection tasks involving both the nuclear island and the conventional island. Key work items include the maintenance and servicing of various pressure-bearing valves, pipes, and fittings, as well as in-depth visual non-destructive testing of the primary circuit's key pressure boundary using high-precision industrial borescope camera equipment.
According to EDF-CNPE, the overhaul of Unit 3 is the last unit shutdown maintenance task carried out as planned in the plant's 2026 annual maintenance campaign. In terms of plant-wide operational scheduling, Units 1 and 2 are currently maintained in safe and controlled operation, continuously delivering baseload electricity smoothly to the grid; Unit 4 remains in its scheduled maintenance shutdown cycle.
