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Both units at Fortum’s Loviisa nuclear power plant have resumed production following the successful completion of their annual outages. In this year’s maintenance cycle, both units underwent a brief refuelling outage, with Unit 2’s annual outage being finished on September 7, 2023, and Unit 1’s annual outage on October 1, 2023.

During the annual outages, approximately 25% of the fuel in both plant units was replaced. Besides the routine maintenance activities and refuelling, in both units underwent tasks associated with maintenance and ongoing enhancement as part of the annual outages. This comprehensive approach ensures the reliability and continuous improvement of the nuclear power plant’s operations.

“In conjunction with the annual outage of Unit 1, a faulty seawater pump motor was replaced, and the servicing work on Unit 2’s second turbine line continued still after the annual outage,” said Sasu Valkamo, Senior Vice President of Loviisa nuclear power plant.

“This year, a test assembly manufactured by Westinghouse was loaded into the reactor; the test assembly doesn’t contain the actual nuclear uranium pellets. We are pursuing mechanical operating experiences with the new fuel type,” adds.

Over the last five years, Fortum’s investments in the Loviisa power plant have amounted to approximately EUR 273 million. In 2022, the power plant generated a total of 7.9 terawatt hours (net) of electricity, representing more than 10% of Finland’s overall electricity production. Fortum employs around 700 nuclear sector professionals, with approximately 550 of them working at the Loviisa power plant. Furthermore, nearly 100 permanent employees from other companies are on-site at the power plant daily, contributing to its operations.