Coolant water leak leads to Krsko shut down
05 June 2008
The Krsko nuclear power plant in Slovenia was shut down on 4 June after a leak in the primary circuit was detected. The leak was found near the reactor coolant pump within the reactor containment structure. The leakage rate was some three cubic metres per hour, which the Slovenian Nuclear Safety Administration (SNSA) said "exceeded the limit of the plant's technical specifications and required the plant shut down." The loss of coolant was controlled by the charging flow and the plant was manually shut down in a controlled way by following the general operating procedures. There was no risk to plant staff and no release of radiation into the environment, the SNSA reported. The exact location of the leak is under investigation and the plant will remain in shutdown until repairs are made. This "will probably take a few days," the SNSA said. The incident has been reported to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which has rated it as level zero on the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES), which is termed a "deviation".