Geline Salac

Jellyfish 'invasion' delays restart of French nuke plant

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Reuters Wires

Four reactors at France&#x27;s Gravelines nuclear plant will return to operation throughout the week, slightly later than initially planned, EDF data showed on Tuesday (August 12) after they were <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/8/11/french-nuclear-plant-nagsara-dahil-sa-dikya-0617">forced offline by a swarm of jellyfish</a> in the cooling systems.The whole Gravelines plant was temporarily halted on Monday (August 11) after a &quot;massive and unpredictable&quot; swarm of jellyfish got into the cooling systems, EDF said. Four reactors were taken offline, while the other two were already undergoing planned maintenance.Nuclear technology expert Emmanuelle Galichet said this is not the first time that jellyfish have disrupted nuclear plants. For example, Scotland&#x27;s Torness faced similar problems in 2011, while Gravelines itself was disrupted in 1993. But she said this phenomenon remains unusual in France&#x27;s north.&quot;It is not a trivial phenomenon, especially in the North Sea,&quot; she said. &quot;Normally, at this time of year, it is still not warm enough for jellyfish to come and venture into these seas.&quot;The plant in northern France is one of the largest in the country and is cooled from a canal connected to the North Sea. Its six units produce 900 megawatts of power each, or 5.4 gigawatts in total.The first reactor, unit 6, is expected to restart on Tuesday, and then one reactor is expected to come back online each day until all four have returned to service on Friday, EDF data showed.The halt could have financial consequences for EDF, as Galichet said a single day of reactor shutdown amounts to one million euros ($1.16 mln) in losses for the energy provider.Galichet said with climate change, similar situations could arise more often in other nuclear plants located near seas with usually colder water.&quot;It&#x27;s true that having jellyfish in the North Sea isn&#x27;t something we were used to just a few decades ago,&quot; she said. &quot;With global warming, there could indeed be a greater profusion of jellyfish in rather cold seas.&quot; (Production: Ardee Napolitano)

Four reactors at France's Gravelines nuclear plant will return to operation throughout the week, slightly later than initially planned, EDF data showed on Tuesday (August 12) after they were forced offline by a swarm of jellyfish in the cooling systems.

Four reactors at France's Gravelines nuclear plant will return to operation throughout the week, slightly later than initially planned, EDF data showed on Tuesday (August 12) after they were forced offline by a swarm of jellyfish in the cooling systems.

Jellyfish 'invasion' delays restart of French nuke plant

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Jellyfish 'invasion' delays restart of French nuke plant

Reuters

Published Aug 13, 2025 09:30 AM PHT

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