France's Golfech Nuclear Power Plant Reconnected to Grid After Shutdown Due to High Temperatures

French utility EDF (Électricité de France) announced that the Golfech nuclear power plant, located in the Tarn-et-Garonne department, has been reconnected to the grid. Unit 2 of the plant was restarted around noon on August 7, following a forced shutdown on July 29 due to high-temperature weather. At the time of the shutdown, Unit 1 was in the maintenance and refueling phase, making the interruption of Unit 2 more impactful on plant operations.

The direct cause of the shutdown at Golfech was that the water temperature of the Garonne River reached regulatory limits. According to relevant regulations, when the daily average water temperature of the Garonne River exceeds 28 degrees Celsius, the plant must reduce reactor power or temporarily cease operations. Since the nuclear plant needs to draw water from the river for cooling and discharge the heated cooling water back into the river, regulatory authorities impose water temperature limits to avoid further exacerbating ecological stress on the river.

Although the water temperature of the Garonne River had fallen back below 28 degrees Celsius by July 31, Unit 2 did not resume operations immediately. EDF explained that the extended shutdown was due to the temporary unavailability of a necessary system used to supply water to the steam generators. It was not until 11:57 a.m. on August 7, once the relevant conditions were restored, that the reactor was reconnected to the grid.

This was the third time this summer that the Golfech nuclear power plant had its operations affected by high-temperature weather. The incident reflects that, against the backdrop of frequent heatwaves and rising river water temperatures, nuclear facilities relying on river cooling face more frequent operational constraints. For the French power system, summer heat not only drives up electricity demand but may also limit part of the generation capacity, increasing pressure on grid dispatch.