Load factors to end September 2009

摘要

Two reactors entered their 40th year of operation in the quarterrnto end of September 2009: Beznau 1, a 380MW BWR operat-rned by NOK Axpo in Switzerland and Oyster Creek, a 680MWrn BWR operated by Exelon in the USA. Despite their ages, bothrnunits continue to perform well with average annual load factors of 90.1 %rnand 77.3%, respectively - both well above the BWR average of 71.4% forrnthe year to end of September 2009.rnAs of September, there were six reactors that had been operating for over forty years. The others: Tarapur 1 & 2 (GE-designed BWRs) in India and the two Magnox units at Oldbury in the UK, which, after operating for almost 42 years, remain the oldest reactors listed in our table! Still, with another four US plants and others elsewhere due to reach the forty-year-milestone by September 2010 this quarter signifies the start of a new era where life above 40 is becoming a reality.