Olkiluoto has produced electricity to national grid already for 35 years
Nuclear power company Teollisuuden Voima Oy was founded in 1969 and the construction of the Company's first nuclear power plant unit started at the beginning of 1974. The project reached the foundation stone laying stage in August of that year. On 12 October this year, it has been 35 years since the commercial operation of the plant unit started.
The construction of the first unit was executed by building consortium Atomirakennus (Atom Construction) set up for the project. The consortium consisted of Swedish company Skånska Cementgjuteriet, which owned 50 % of the share capital and was in charge of the worksite, and Finnish building companies Vesto Oy, Rakennus Oy and Ruola Oy. The construction project was one of the largest in Finland at the time, with a total cost estimate of ca. 150 million Finnish marks, or ca. 25 MEUR.
"Contract on commercial operation": Representatives of the Client, TVO, and the plant supplier, Asea-Atom, signed documents stating that the responsibility for the operation of TVO I would be transferred over to TVO after the pre-operational testing stage, which lasted a little more than a year. The contract was signed by Lars Helle in his capacity as the Managing Director of Asea-Atom (centre at the table) and by TVO's CEO Magnus von Bonsdorff (left) and Director of Project Department Esko Haapala. The legal advisors of both the companies witnessed the signing: Lars Gunnar Flemströn (left) and Risto Roto. (Photo TVO's archives)
Labour disputes and fire in the reactor building prolonged construction period
Work at TVO 1 unit were delayed due to the overheating of the construction industry. There were several strikes on the worksite causing numerous delays in the schedule. On 8 February 1976, a fire started on the worksite and resulted in almost a hectare of concrete surface having to be demolished in the reactor building. By 17 June that same year, repair work had progressed enough to allow the celebration of the topping-out ceremony at the plant unit.
The pressure test of the reactor building was carried out in 1977. After successful completion of the test, it could be concluded that concreting and fire damage had been repaired acceptably and the containment fulfilled the requirements originally laid down for it. The construction project was finished in the spring of 1978.
Olkiluoto 1 was synchronised to the national grid for the first time on 2 September 1978. After the commissioning and pre-operational tests, the commercial operation of the plant unit started on 12 October 1979, when the plant supplier Asea-Atom handed the responsibility for the operation of the unit over to TVO.
By the end of 2013, TVO's first unit had produced a total of more than 216 million MWh of electricity. Together the two power plant units in Olkiluoto had produced by the end of last year more than 424 million MWh of electricity to the national grid.
Olkiluoto plant units rank among the top plants in the world
The 35-year long operating history of the Olkiluoto plant units has been a success story of Finnish electricity production. The units have produced electricity reliably and efficiently for the needs of Finnish society, boasting capacity factors ranking among the best in the world. Moreover, Olkiluoto has in the past decades developed into a globally acknowledged centre of nuclear power expertise.
The first nuclear power plant unit project in Olkiluoto has reached the construction stage of the reactor containment.
Share