Output at Czech Temelín plant can still increase, new director says

In the long term, output at the Temelín nuclear power plant could rise above last year's record, according to its new director, Petr Měšťan. Last year, the plant generated 17.38 million megawatt-hours of electricity. Měšťan, who has been Temelín's director since 1 January, told the Czech News Agency (ČTK).

"In the long term, we will certainly continue looking for further opportunities to increase output and make operations more efficient. However, safety will always be the priority," he said.

The plant's output will be significantly affected by the number of outages. As Temelín is moving to a 16-month cycle, annual generation will vary accordingly. "This will also be reflected this year, when the generation record will certainly not be broken, but we would like to be around 15 million MWh of electricity generated," the director said.

The 56-year-old Měšťan has devoted his professional life to nuclear power and knows both Czech nuclear power plants well. After completing a degree in the design of nuclear power equipment at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen, he joined the Dukovany nuclear power plant as an operator. After three years, he moved to Temelín, where he took part in its commissioning as an operator at the turn of the century. He held every position in the control room of the South Bohemian nuclear power plant. He subsequently worked as a shift engineer and chief operations technologist. He then spent five years as manager of the asset management department and, since 2020, has held the position of safety director for the Temelín and Dukovany nuclear power plants.

He is not planning any major changes to Temelín's operations in his new role. "The long-term goals remain essentially the same. To have a safe and efficient power plant that is a key Czech energy source, whose electricity Czech companies and households can rely on. And to achieve that, you need to keep the equipment in perfect condition throughout its long operating life, be as efficient as possible, ensure sufficient qualified staff and have public support," he said.

Temelín began operations 25 years ago. ČEZ will invest CZK 3.8 billion in modernising the nuclear power plant this year. This is CZK 700 million more than last year. "We will continue the transition to a new control system and expand the use of modern technologies, including AI," the new director said.