After its valves failed a three-month routine test, Koeberg nuclear station is back on stream after being successfully synchronised to the grid.
Koeberg, Africa’s only operational nuclear energy generating station, is beginning its new lifespan after unit 1’s new licence was awarded in August, which will keep it operational until 2044.
Eskom told TimesLIVE Premium the station's unit 1 “was conservatively and safely shut down on Wednesday, 11 September 2024, after isolation/block valves failed its three-monthly routine test”.
On Friday, the unit was synchronised to help improve Eskom's generating capacity, which has fended off load-shedding for six months.
“The unit was shut down to restore redundancy of the steam pressure relief system in line with the operating technical specifications. This was done through Eskom’s internal resources,” Eskom stated.
It also indicated that “at no point was the safety of the plant, staff, public or environment at risk” when this was done.
“The intervention has been completed, and the unit was returned to service (that is, synchronised to the grid) around 1pm last Friday (September 20) and is in the process of being safely returned to full power,” Eskom stated.
It also indicated that the unit was generating power at slightly under full capacity, generating about 891MW to the national grid.
Eskom stated that this also strengthened its generation capacity, enabling it to handle demand surges.
“The successful implementation of the Generation Operational Recovery plan continues to ensure that we have sufficient generation capacity to meet electricity demand. Additionally, we have sufficient emergency reserves to handle any sudden changes in demand during peak periods,” Eskom said.
The National Nuclear Regulator granted Eskom a licence to continue operating Koeberg nuclear power station's unit 1, which at full capacity provides 930MW to the grid, for another 20 years until July 21 2044.
The nuclear industry in South Africa remains committed to optimising performance and maintaining high safety standards throughout this next phase
— Princess Mthombeni, founder of Africa4Nuclear,
Princess Mthombeni, founder of Africa4Nuclear, an organisation advocating for nuclear solutions, said this was great news.
“According to the latest updates from colleagues at Koeberg, unit 1 is currently operating at about 98%, since yesterday [Wednesday]. While there were initial challenges during the testing phase, the team has worked diligently to bring the unit back online, contributing steadily to the grid,” Mthombeni said.
She said the ongoing improvements were part of the broader efforts to ensure the reliability and sustainability of the plant, “especially as it enters a new 20-year operational period”.
“The nuclear industry in South Africa remains committed to optimising performance and maintaining high safety standards throughout this next phase,” Mthombeni said.
Koeberg’s other unit is on outage as its steam generators are being replaced.It also awaits the granting of its new operating licence from the nuclear regulator.
“The outage [of unit 2] is still in progress, and at present, the unit is expected to return to service by end of calendar year,” Eskom said.
South Africa looks set to build 2,500MW of new nuclear energy , and electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa is expected to announce details about the project after getting advice from an advisory committee that he's in the process of appointing.
Eskom CEO Dan Marokane recently said the cost of extending the lifespan of the Koeberg nuclear power station had set Eskom back by R22bn for both units.
“The R22bn is for both units ... just to give context, it’s R22bn for 1,800MW for the next 20 years. We should see this cost within that context,” Marokane said earlier this month.
Marokane said at the time that nuclear energy was important in helping to ensure the country reduces emissions and that it was a key baseload replacement for coal-powered plants being repurposed through the just transition process.
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