Beznau nuclear power plant: Start of the annual revision of Unit 1

17.04.2020 - Today, the Beznau nuclear power plant (KKB) is taking Unit 1 off the grid for just over a month as planned for inspection work and for the replacement of fuel elements. This marks the end of an op-erating cycle of just over 300 days.  

The main focus of the revision includes maintenance work, recurring tests and inspections as well as the commissioning of new systems. In addition, integral system tests are carried out as usual. Of the total of 121 fuel assemblies, 20 will be replaced by new ones. 

Since June 10, 2019, Block 1 has continuously and almost trouble-free produced more than 2.8 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, which corresponds to the annual electricity consumption of around 600,000 households. 

When the plant is shut down, water vapour becomes visible from the non-nuclear part of the plant above the turbine building. There is no danger to people or the environment. 

During the revision, the approximately 460 employees of the KKB are supported by around 400 external specialists from the region as well as from Switzerland and abroad.

At the same time as the revision, the weather protection on the containment dome of unit 1 will also be renewed with a view to long-term operation. The power plant unit was scaffolded for this purpose and for reasons of occupational safety. However, work is currently interrupted due to the Corona crisis. These activities will take several months in total. 

During the revision, the Beznau nuclear power plant continues to implement the strict measures adopted to prevent the spread of the corona virus and to protect its own and external staff. This is reflected both in the access procedure and in the performance of the work. Only the necessary personnel are present on the site. The redundancy required in times of crisis has been created by means of an adapted de-ployment planning. 

All work is under the supervision of the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate.