France's Strongest Nuclear Reactor In Normandy Finally Operates

Illustration of a nuclear power reactor. (Pixabay-JamesQube)

JAKARTA - France announced that it has successfully connected its strongest nuclear power reactor named the European Press Reactor (EPR) Flamanville 3 to the national power grid.

The EPR project is considered an important moment even though it has been delayed for years due to budget swelling and technical problems.

"A great moment for this country," said French President Emmanuel Macron in a statement on his LinkedIn social networking account, Sunday, December 22, quoted by AFP.

Macron sees the project as one of the strongest nuclear reactors in the world.

"Reindustrialization to produce low-carbon energy is a French-style ecology. It strengthens our competitiveness and protects the climate," Macron continued.

The EPR located in Normandy began providing electricity to French homes on Saturday 21 Desemper at 11.48 am.

The inaugural EPR project was launched in 1992. The draft process aims to re-launch nuclear power in Europe after the 1986 Chernobyl disaster in Soviet Ukraine.

The project is said to also offer more efficient output and better security.

The EPR, a new generation of pressure water reactor, is the fourth complete technology in the world. Similar design reactors in China and Finland have been operating first.

This launch is good news for French-owned energy company EDF, which is in large debt after facing various problems in extending development for up to 17 years and causing a large budget swelling.