Czech nuclear power plant Temelín to invest CZK 4.1 billion in modernization this year

The Temelín nuclear power plant will invest 4.1 billion crowns in modernization this year. It also plans to hire 100 new employees for various positions. Jan Kruml, director of the Temelín power plant, told reporters today.

„For example, we will refurbish equipment that supplies heat to České Budějovice, Týn nad Vltavou and the nuclear power plant site. Last year, we started supplying heat to České Budějovice, and so far we have been using only Unit 2 (of the nuclear power plant) for this. This year, we want to refurbish similar equipment on Unit 1 as well, so that we have a backup,“ Kruml said.

He added that ČEZ is working with Westinghouse on replacing the plant’s control system. „In terms of scale and technological complexity, this is one of the most challenging control system replacements. We started in 2021, and the work will continue until 2029,“ the director said.

The Temelín nuclear power plant has been in operation since 2000. Over that time, it has invested 31 billion crowns in modernization and development. More than 1,300 employees currently work at the plant. Despite demand for additional workers, staffing levels will not change significantly. „We have more than 20 years of operations behind us, and the first generation of energy workers who started here is gradually retiring. So we have to replace them, which is important for us. For operations management, we are looking for graduates of good technical universities and working with universities in Prague and Brno. But we also need to replace our mid-level staff, and we need welders, fitters and so on,“ Kruml said.

The Temelín nuclear power plant exceeded 16 TWh of output for the second year in a row in 2023. This year, it plans one outage at each of its two units, in April and October.