Nuclear fraud scandal in France, 18 out of 58 nuclear reactors have been shut down effective immediatly.
The French nuclear watchdog ASN discovered, during a routine check of the reactor EPR at Flamanville, the reactor shell was made from steel that has a too high carbon concentration, which makes it less resistant to heat. The reactor has been immediatly shut down.
Further investigation by nuclear inspections from the US, China and four other countries revealed that more reactors had the same high carbon issue, and investigating further, possible fraud and forgery came to light at the factory Areva, which manufactures nuclear powerplant parts. The French Justice department has started an investigation.
Blocked files were found at Areva, which contained reports about flaws and imperfections of generators, hidden away from customers and authorities.
What's more, the files seem to contain forged documents, according to Pierre-Franck Chevet, director of ASN.
In total, 200 such files were found, the earliest stemming from the 1960s. A document from 2008 showed that a piece of disapproved steel was used for building the steam generator in the Fessenheim nuclear plant in the Elzas. This reactor, too, has been immediatly shut down.
According to Avera, tampering with documents has stopped in 2012, when quality control was improved.
It's extra embarrassing, since Areva was saved from bankrupcy earlier this year through a capital injection by the French state. This is still being investigated by the EU, as it might be a case of illegitimate state support.
Of the 18 shut down reactors, 6 have been restarted, because otherwise France would not have enough power to prevent blackouts, with nearly 80% of it's electricity being generated in nuclear plants. Another seven are soon to be restarted. The remaining 5 will remain closed for revision.
EDIT: apparently, the scandal was discovered this summer already, and the two specific power plant shutdowns I mentioned already occured back in September. It's just now come to the media's attention.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/problems-at-nuclear-components-supplier-spark-global-reviews-1481625005