Finland's Olkiluoto reactor delayed again.

Olkiluoto nuclear plant in Finland

Olkiluoto-3, able to power about 3 million homes, will be delayed until May 2019 from its previously expected to start at the end of next year, according to Teollisuuden Voima Oyj, the Helsinki-based utility that will operate the unit. Areva SA, the supplier, said it needed more time to adjust the production schedule.

“Since it has been delayed for so long, it’s hard to tell when market participants priced in its start,” said John Brottemsmo, a senior market analyst at Kinect Energy Group in Bergen, Norway. “There’s still two years left until the start, so there may be further delays that would have a bigger impact on prices.”

Olkiluoto-3 was billed by Areva and Siemens AG as a showcase for next-generation EPR-reactor technology when construction started in 2005. The project’s initial 3 billion-euro ($3.5 billion) cost has swelled to more than 8 billion euros.

The new reactor technology is proving tricky even in state-owned Areva’s home market. The cost of an EPR at Flamanville in France has tripled since construction started in 2007 in a project that’s six years behind schedule.

Areva has been delisted from the stock exchange by the French state, which injected 2 billion euros in the entity in July to help it complete the Olkiluoto project and pay back some loans. Areva is also due to sell a majority stake in its reactor business to Electricite de France SA by the end of the year to raise further funds. 

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This is the same EPR reactor to be used at Hinkley Point.