London — French nuclear output fell below 41 GW Wednesday morning, with operator EDF listing three unplanned short-term outages with a combined 3 GW capacity, according to grid operator RTE.

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The 1.3 GW Belleville-2 reactor was shut down late Tuesday night after three measuring devices were found to be malfunctioning, EDF said in a brief statement, with the unit currently expected to return overnight into Thursday.

The 0.9 GW Gravelines-6 reactor was also taken offline in an unplanned outage overnight and is expected to return at 5 am local time Friday, according to EDF Transparency.

The return of the 0.9 GW Tricastin-2 unit, offline since June for various reasons, was postponed again, with EDF Transparency now listing the unavailability as "unplanned" due to "failure", with the unit set to restart at 6 pm Wednesday evening.

EDF also delayed the planned return from maintenance of its 0.9 GW Cruas-1 reactor by two days to Saturday night. Cruas-1 is one of six reactors cleared by the regulator in the latest batch in the Creusot review, with 46 of EDF's 58 French reactors now cleared.

French nuclear output has stabilized after hitting a record low in 2017, with September output ramping up 5 GW from August to average 41.6 GW, according to TSO data.

S&P Global Platts Analytics in its "European Electricity Monthly Outlook" published September 28 assumes French nuclear output averaging 42.5 GW in October, with the Q4 average some 4 GW above last year's record low. This would keep EDF on track for its annual nuclear output target of 395 TWh.

However, some risks remain, with Platts Analytics noting the ongoing shift in the restart of reactors as a key factor.

The improved nuclear outlook in France is offset by a 2.5 GW shortfall in Belgium this winter and the permanent closure of the 1.3 GW Gundremmingen B reactor in Germany, with combined nuclear output across the CWE region for December seen barely above December 2017 levels, Platts Analytics said in its October report.

--Andreas Franke, andreas.franke@spglobal.com

--Edited by Jonathan Fox, jonathan.fox@spglobal.com