Bradwell Power Station
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| Bradwell Power Station | |
  Bradwell Power Station shown within Essex |
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| OS grid reference | |
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| Fuel: | Nuclear |
| Commissioned: | 1956 |
| Decommissioned: | 2002 |
Bradwell power station is a twin Magnox reactor nuclear power station now undergoing decommissioning following shutdown at the end of March 2002 after 40 years of operation. It is located on the Dengie peninsula at the mouth of the River Blackwater in Essex, England.
Construction of Bradwell power station began in December 1957 and electricity generation started in 1962. It was one of eleven Magnox nuclear power stations commissioned in the United Kingdom between 1956 and 1971. In 1966, twenty natural uranium fuel rods were stolen from Bradwell.[1]
The station generated nearly 60 TW·h of electricity during its operational life and on a typical day could supply enough electricity to meet the needs of three towns the size of Chelmsford, Colchester and Southend put together.
Bradwell was built on the edge of a former World War II airfield, one and a half miles from the Essex coastline. Its location was deliberately chosen as the land had minimal agricultural value, offered easy access, was geologically sound and had an unlimited source of cooling water from the North Sea. In 1999, it was announced that the station would cease operation in 2002 - the first UK station to be closed on a planned basis.
This is one of the sites being considered by British Energy for redevelopment in a new round of nuclear reactors.[2]
 Bradwell from the sewage pipe |
 Bradwell Bay Power Station |
[edit] References
- ^ Amory B. Lovins & L. Hunter Lovins. Brittle Power. Brick House Publishing Company, p. 146. ISBN 0-931790-49-2.
- ^ "British Energy eyes nuclear sites", BBC Online, 27 November 2007.
[edit] External links
- Map sources for Bradwell Power Station
- British Nuclear Group
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