France's Golfech Nuclear Plant Shut Down Amid Extreme Heatwave

French national electricity company EDF suspended operations at the Golfech nuclear power plant on Thursday after extreme weather caused a sharp rise in the temperature of the Garonne River, which is used to cool its reactors. “Unit No. 2 of the EDF Golfech nuclear power plant was temporarily shut down on Thursday, 9 July, at 11.30 local time,” the company said in an official statement. The plant’s first reactor was already undergoing maintenance. With the shutdown of the second unit, the entire facility has now effectively ceased operations. The water temperature of the Garonne is predicted to continue rising, reaching 28 degrees Celsius on Friday. Under French regulations, nuclear plants are required to reduce capacity or halt production entirely during extreme heat events to prevent further warming of river water and protect local ecosystems and aquatic life. France, along with several other European countries, has been gripped by a severe heatwave in recent weeks. At the end of June, the French meteorological agency issued its highest-level heat alert for 72 of the 96 departments in mainland France, setting a new historical record.