Switzerland's 1,245MWe single-unit NPP at Leibstadt will extend its outage for maintenance by eight weeks until 29 October, according to plant operator KKL, after discolouration was discovered in eight cladding tubes used to encase fuel rods. KLL said in a statement that the tubes needed to be further assessed and swapped, as they pointed to oxidation problems. However, it said "the integrity of the fuel elements (themselves) is not affected." The problems now established were advanced enough to make the fuel elements unusable for the plant's next operating cycle, resulting in the eight week delay, KKL said. The plant was due to restart on 27 August.
Meanwhile, Swiss NPP operators have confirmed that no forged safety-related components were affected by irregularities in their manufacturing paperwork, Switzerland's Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (ENSI). France’s Areva has confirmed to the Swiss operators that no large parts produced at its Le Creusot forge were used at the Mühleberg and Gösgen NPPs, while parts used in the Leibstadt and Beznau plants are fully documented. ENSI said the operators were able to produce complete documentation for all forged parts within their plants.
