goingcritical:chinon-b1France · Power reactor
Chinon B1
Status: Operating critical since October 28, 1982 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: Chinon, Indre-et-Loire
First of four CP2-series 900 MWe PWRs (the "B" units) at the Chinon plant on the Loire. The B units succeeded Chinon's pioneering A1/A2/A3 gas-graphite reactors, France's earliest power reactors, on the same historic site.
Details
| Design | 900 MWe CP2 PWR |
| Electrical output | 905 MWe |
Milestone history
- Announced —
- Construction start March 1, 1977
- Fuel load —
- First criticality October 28, 1982
- Grid connection November 30, 1982
- Commercial operation February 1, 1984