Brazil's Nuclear Power Plant Angra 1 Is Shut Down After Failure

02/20/2015 - 08h45

Angra 1 nuclear power plant was powered down in the early hours of Thursday (19), after a failure of the capacitors that cool the steam used to move the electric generators, informed Eletronuclear, an Eletrobras group company responsible for the operation.
 
The state-run company did not anticipate when Angra 1 will be restarted.

"Eletronuclear's engineering and maintenance teams are already working to solve the problem and determine when the unit may be turned back on", says the note.
 
According to Eletronuclear, the problem happened at 12:22 am. The company says the stoppage did not "represent a risk to workers, the public or the environment".
 
The shutdown occurred to protect other equipment, such as power plant steam generators, according to Eletronuclear.
 
"The capacitor is not part of the equipment located in the nuclear area or in the power plant and the event did not present any risk to Eletronuclear's workers, the population or the environment", the company said in a note.
 
Located in Angra dos Reis (Rio de Janeiro), with an installed capacity of 640 megawatts, Angra 1 has been important to help provide electricity to the country whenever the water reservoirs are low and, as a result, there is a hydroelectric generation deficit.

Translated by JULIANA CALDERARI

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	Luciana Whitaker/Folhapress
	Located in Angra dos Reis (Rio de Janeiro), Angra 1 has been important to help provide electricity to the country