The unexpected shutdown of a nuclear reactor at Plant Vogtle in east Georgia was triggered by a failed breaker, according to Atlanta-based Southern Co.No other equipment was damaged and the shutdown proceeded safely, the company said.
The reactor, which went out of service Wednesday evening, will resume operation once the breaker and some other equipment is replaced and testing is finished, said Carrie Phillips, a spokeswoman for Southern Nuclear. When the breaker tripped, a signal was automatically sent to the reactor, shutting it down.
"Everything went as designed," Phillips said.
The company did not indicate when the unit might start producing power again, citing competitive reasons. But once a reactor restarts, it typically takes 12-14 hours to reach full power.
Southern Co. reported Thursday that the Unit 1 reactor at Plant Vogtle automatically shut down without incident on Wednesday evening.
Nuclear reactors are designed to shut down if automatic monitoring systems detect conditions that could be unsafe. Breakers are a common part of electrical systems and are designed to shut off power if current fluctuates.
Joey Ledford, a spokesman for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, said a reactor "trip" is not necessarily a problem. A unit of a nuclear plant would have to have three such occurrences in 7,000 hours of operation -- nearly 10 months -- before the shutdowns would trigger more frequent inspections.
It was unclear when Plant Vogtle last had a similar incident. The facility has not had any recent issues with unexpected shutdowns, Ledford said. But "that's not to say we're not very interested in what happened," he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
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