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Jellyfish swarm forces shutdown of four reactors at French nuclear plant
A swarm of jellyfish clogged the cooling system at the Gravelines nuclear power plant, forcing the shutdown of four reactors, according to a Politico report, citing French energy company EDF.
'These shutdowns are the result of the massive and unforeseeable presence of jellyfish in the filter drums of the pumping stations, located in the non-nuclear part of the installations,' Politico quoted an EDF spokesperson as saying in a statement.
The company is currently carrying out diagnostics and necessary interventions to restart the plant safely, the spokesperson added.
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French energy giant EDF confirmed that three of the Gravelines nuclear power plant's six reactors automatically shut down late Sunday, with a fourth going offline early Monday.
The two remaining units were already out of operation for scheduled maintenance. Each of the plant's six reactors has a capacity of 5.4 gigawatts.
EDF, which oversees France's electricity production across nuclear, hydro, renewables, and thermal sources, said that the incident poses no risk to the safety of the plant, its staff, or the surrounding environment.
The reactors were shut down after jellyfish entered the plant's cooling system, which draws seawater from a canal linked to the North Sea.
Marine biologists note that jellyfish blooms in the region have become more frequent in recent years, driven by rising sea temperatures, altered salinity levels, and overfishing that has reduced natural jellyfish predators.
With inputs from agencies
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