| Saint-Alban Nuclear Power Plant | |
| Name Official: | Centrale nucléaire de Saint-Alban |
| Coordinates: | 45.4044°N 4.7553°W |
| Country: | France |
| Location: | Saint-Alban-du-Rhône, Isère, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes |
| Status: | O |
| Construction Began: | Unit 1: 29 January 1979 Unit 2: 31 July 1979 |
| Commissioned: | Unit 1: Unit 2: |
| Owner: | EDF |
| Operator: | EDF |
| Np Reactor Type: | PWR |
| Np Reactor Supplier: | Framatome |
| Ps Cooling Source: | Rhône River |
| Ps Units Operational: | 2 × 1335 MW |
| Ps Units Manu Model: | P4 REP 1300 |
| Ps Thermal Capacity: | 2 × 3817 MWth |
| Ps Electrical Capacity: | 2670 |
| Ps Electrical Cap Fac: | 61.54% (2017) 67.90% (lifetime) |
| Ps Annual Generation: | 14,394 GWh (2017) |
| Website: | Centrale nucléaire de Saint-Alban |
The Saint-Alban nuclear power plant is located on the Rhone river, in the Isère department 50 km downstream from Lyon in the communes of Saint-Alban-du-Rhône and Saint-Maurice-l'Exil.
The power station uses water from the Rhone river to cool its two 1,300 MW reactors and employs 670 people.
The following types of reactors are installed:[1]
| Reactor Unit[2] | Type | Average Output | Rated Power | Began construction | Finish construction | Commercial operation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St.Alban-1 | 1381 MW | 1335 MW | Jan 1979 | Aug 1985 | May 1986 | |
| St.Alban-2 | 1381 MW | 1335 MW | July 1979 | July 1986 | March 1987 | |
According to WENRA, EDF has prepared a plan in case of an earthquake,[3] however other ASN documents from 2002 there may be some anomalies regarding the remote control and which may put into question the correct functioning of certain elements following an earthquake.
Following extremely high temperatures in July 2003 average water temperature rose above the limit authorised by the nuclear safety authorities for a period of 4 hours.
According to the 2007 ASN annual report recommendations were made to the operator to improve the security of the control room.[4]