Nuclear plant put under extra regulatory attention

A nuclear power plant has been told to improve its on-site safety by the industry regulator.

The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) said Hartlepool Nuclear Power Station needed to improve health and safety performance.

Despite being moved into enhanced regulatory attention, ONR said the EDF-operated site was still safe to operate.

The plant's director Mark Lees said the company had created an action plan which would "continuously improve" its performance.

"This power station has an excellent operating and safety record built up over more than 40 years of electricity generation and it is important to note the ONR has clearly said it has confidence the site can continue to safely operate," he said.

"We have always worked with the ONR to address, and flag, technical issues as they emerge and to ensure they are content with the way we're working."

The ONR's superintending inspector for operating reactors, Mike Webb, said it was encouraging that EDF had already submitted a performance improvement plan.

"We have reviewed this plan and are confident it will address our outlined concerns," he said.

Hartlepool Nuclear Power Station opened in 1983 and contains two advanced gas-cooled reactors capable of powering 1.4 million homes.

Last year it was announced the site would continue to operate for an extra year until 2027.

The ONR said the additional regulatory attention did not relate to the decision to extend the operating life of the station.

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