goingcritical:berkeley-2United Kingdom · Power reactor
Berkeley 2
Status: Shut down reached first criticality March 1, 1962 Reactor status full glossary → Announced Publicly announced — a site and design are proposed, but construction has not begun. Site preparation Early site and civil works are under way; the first safety-related ("nuclear") concrete has not yet been poured. Under construction Formal construction has begun, marked by the first nuclear concrete. Fuel loaded Nuclear fuel has been loaded into the core. The reactor is fuelled but has not yet gone critical. Critical Has reached first criticality — a self-sustaining chain reaction, usually at low power — but is not yet connected to the grid. Grid connected Synchronised to the electrical grid and exporting power for the first time, but still in commissioning and power-ascension testing — not yet in commercial service. In commercial operation — the operator has formally declared the unit in regular commercial service. Shut down Permanently shut down and no longer generating; may be defuelled, undergoing decommissioning, or preserved in place. Canceled Abandoned before completion.
Site: Berkeley, Gloucestershire
Second reactor at Berkeley, one of the first CEGB Magnox commercial stations; shut down October 1988
Details
| Design | Magnox gas-cooled, graphite-moderated reactor |
| Electrical output | 138 MWe |
Milestone history
- Announced —
- Construction start January 1, 1957
- Fuel load —
- First criticality March 1, 1962
- Grid connection June 24, 1962
- Commercial operation October 20, 1962