Wylfa Nuclear Power Station

The Wylfa Nuclear Power Station is situated just west of Cemaes Bay on the island of Anglesey, North Wales. Its location on the coast provides an excellent cooling source for its operation. It is named Wylfa as a local resident David Hughes, who went on to become a prominent builder in Liverpool and build Cemaes Town Hall, had his cottage named Wylfa on the site in the late 19th century.

History

They have a combined capacity of 980 MW and Wylfa typically supplies 23 GW h of electricity daily. It is the largest and last reactor of its type to be built in the UK. It was the second British nuclear power station, following Oldbury, to have a pre-stressed concrete pressure vessel instead of steel for easier construction and enhanced safety.

The original design output was 1,190 MW but unexpected accelerated ("breakaway") corrosion of mild steel components of the gas circuit in hot CO₂ was detected even before the first reactor began operating. The channel gas outlet temperature, the temperature at which the CO₂ leaves the fuel channels in the reactor core, had to be reduced, initially dropping the power output to 840 MW, which was later raised to 980 MW as more experience accumulated.

The graphite cores each weigh ; 6,156 vertical fuel channels contain over 49,248 natural uranium magnox-clad fuel elements, hence the name magnox reactor. A further 200 channels allow boron control rods to enter the reactor and control the nuclear reaction. The primary coolant in the reactors is carbon dioxide gas.

The power station is operated by Magnox North Ltd. The site is owned by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA). Its purpose is to oversee and manage the decommissioning and clean-up of the UK's civil nuclear legacy.

On 20 July 2006 the NDA announced that the station will be shut down in 2010 because operation beyond then would be uneconomic given plans to shut down the Magnox spent fuel reprocessing plant at Sellafield. However in 2010 the NDA announced an extension to 2012, beyond Wylfa's 40th anniversary as a generating power station in January 2011.

Future nuclear plant plans

Nevertheless, Wylfa continues to provide vital employment to the local area and electricity to the North of Wales, and in March 2006 the local council voted to extend the life of Wylfa A and to support the construction of Wylfa B, citing the potential loss of employment in the smelter works and nuclear station.

Horizon Nuclear Power, an E.ON and RWE joint venture, announced in 2009 intentions to install about 3,000 MWe of new nuclear plant at Wylfa. Horizon is considering building either Areva EPR or Westinghouse AP1000 reactors at a site to the south of the existing Wylfa station.

On 18 October 2010 the British government announced that Wylfa was one of the eight sites it considered suitable for future nuclear power stations.

See also

References

External links

Category:Buildings and structures in Anglesey Category:Nuclear power stations in Wales Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1971