Olkiluoto Nuclear Power Plant [UPSC Notes]

Finland’s much-delayed and costly new nuclear reactor has completed a test phase and started regular output in April 2023. This article talks about the Olkiluoto 3 Reactor, an important topic for the IAS exam current affairs segment.

Olkiluoto 3 Reactor

• The Olkiluoto 3 is Western Europe’s first new nuclear reactor in more than 15 years. 
• It is the first European Pressurised Reactor, or EPR, a reactor of the latest generation to go online. 
• Olkiluoto 3 was developed in a joint venture between France’s Areva and Germany’s Siemens, and construction on it started in 2005.
• The Olkiluoto 3 reactor has a capacity of 1,600 megawatts.
• Finland currently operates five nuclear reactors at two power plants along the Baltic Sea. 

Source: Bloomberg

Significance of the Olkiluoto 3 reactor

• It will boost energy security and help Finland reach its carbon neutrality goals.
• It meets 14% of Finland’s total electrical needs.
• It will greatly increase the Nordic nation’s level of power self-sufficiency.

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