TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s Atomic Energy Council said on Wednesday (June 30) that the first reactor in the Second Nuclear Power Plant will begin to curtail its output and then shut down on July 1, as the spent fuel pools are nearly full, CNA reported.
As the pools are almost full, the spent fuel in the reactor core has to stay there temporarily. Therefore, safety equipment will need repair and testing, the council said.
The operation permit for the first reactor in the Second Nuclear Power Plant will expire on December 27. Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) submitted the decommission plan for the first reactor three years ago, and the Atomic Energy Council approved it on Oct. 20 of last year.
The council will issue the permit for the decommission once Taipower completes the environmental impact assessment for the operation. The decommission will be carried out after the permit is issued, per CNA.
