SLOVAKIA’S Nuclear Regulatory Authority (ÚJD) reported “a certain increase” in the number of failures reported on the first and second units at the Mochovce nuclear power plant in 2009, the SITA newswire reported.
The failures fell under the category of ordinary technical failures without any special significance in terms of nuclear safety. Events that occurred at Mochovce last year had no fundamental impact on safety, states the ÚJD’s Report on Nuclear Safety in Slovakia for 2009, SITA wrote.
ÚJD reported three automatic shutdowns of Mochovce units in 2009 but stated that these did not pose threats to safety. The automatic mechanisms and protection systems functioned during these events in compliance with the power plant’s approved processes.
The power plant operator carried out some preventive measures to avoid a repetition of similar events, the report stated.
The office’s inspection unit evaluated the performance of all nuclear power facilities in Slovakia as reliable and safe.
No serious events affected the performance of any facilities that would have forced the office to order lowering of the plants’ outputs or the shutdown of a reactor. The office carried out 164 inspections last year, SITA wrote.
