OL3 regular electricity production now due in September

TVO said the inspections and repairs will last about three weeks, after which the unit's test production programme and electricity production will continue. "Furthermore, additional time has been reserved in the schedule for the plant unit's upcoming testing and their analyses based on previous experiences from the test production phase," it added.

The company noted the inspections and repairs to OL3's generator are not related to an error in the automation system signal which led to the unexpected activation of the reactor's boron pumps during a planned shut down earlier this week.

The Areva-Siemens consortium constructed the OL3 plant under a fixed-price turnkey contract. They have joint liability for the contractual obligations until the end of the guarantee period of the unit. Construction of Olkiluoto 3 began in 2005, with completion of the reactor originally scheduled for 2009, but the project has had various delays and setbacks.

OL3 attained first criticality on 21 December and was connected to the grid on 12 March. At that time, TVO said a test production phase, lasting about four months, would follow during which OL3's power output will be gradually increased to 100%.

Once regular electricity production has started, OL3 will produce about 14% of Finland's total electricity consumption.