Feb 24, 2000 - 12:42 PM

Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Shut Down for Repairs

The Associated Press

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) - Operators shut down Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant on Thursday after discovering a defect in a safety valve, plant officials said Thursday.

The problem did not result in any radiation leaking from the facility's only working reactor but comes on the heels of many small glitches at the aging plant. Workers reduced electricity output by half on Wednesday after a turbine generator malfunction.

The safety valves - which vent steam from cooling pipes - have been the cause of several shutdowns since December. The valves, made by the French company SEBIM, were installed last fall during a safety upgrade.

The reactor is expected to resume the work on March 4.

Chernobyl was the site of the world's worst nuclear accident in April 1986, when the No. 4 reactor melted down and exploded during a test.

Meanwhile, another two reactors are scheduled to shut down for repairs at the Zaporizhia atomic power plant, the Interfax news agency said. Plant operators plan to shut down reactor No. 6 on Saturday for three months and reactor No. 3 on March 4 to repair a pipeline defect, the report said.

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGIQUMFN25C.html

-- Carl Jenkins (Somewherepress@aol.com), February 24, 2000