S.Africa shuts down a unit at nuclear power plant

(Reuters) - South Africa's state power utility Eskom said it shut down one unit at its Koeberg nuclear plant on Thursday to check for potential damage, but it should still be able to meet the country's electricity needs.

"We took the decision at 4 p.m. this afternoon (1400 GMT) to shut down the unit," spokesman Fani Zulu said. "We can meet the demand with only one unit, however, the system becomes tight."


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French nukes 'circling Eskom'

Leading French nuclear companies are circling power utility Eskom, hoping to get in on the construction of the next conventional nuclear plant in the Western Cape, Business Report said on Tuesday.

Industry speculation is that Areva, the company that built South Africa's first and only plant at Koeberg, is prepared to take a stake in the development of the fourth-generation pebble bed modular reactor programme in exchange for the contract to build the country's second conventional nuclear plant.

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