Marcoule nuclear power plant G2
Gross capacity
43MW
Marcoule nuclear power plant G2 is a gas-cooled reactor unit at Marcoule nuclear power plant in France rated at 43 MW gross. It is retired. Commercial operation began 22 Apr 1959.
Specification
| Reactor type | Gas-cooled reactor (GCR) |
|---|---|
| Model | not disclosed |
| Size | Small300 MWe or less |
| Coolant | Carbon dioxide |
| Moderator | Graphite |
| Gross capacity | 43MW |
| Net capacity (reference) | 39MW |
| Net capacity (design) | 36MW |
| Thermal output | 260MWt |
| NSSS vendor | not on record |
| Typical enrichment | Natural uranium to 2.5–3.5% U-235 |
Ownership & location
| Site | Marcoule nuclear power plant |
|---|---|
| Unit | G2 |
| Country | France |
| Owner | Commissariat À L'Energie Atomique100% |
| Operator | Compagnie Generale Des Matieres Nucleaires |
| Coordinates | 44.1433, 4.7094 |
Fuel chain for this unit
Fuel form
Uranium metal (Magnox) or uranium dioxide (AGR)
Enrichment
Natural uranium to 2.5–3.5% U-235 no enrichment required
Upstream
This unit runs on natural uranium, so its fuel chain has no enrichment step at all: mine → mill → conversion → fabrication. That is the shortest fuel chain of any commercial reactor type, and it makes the operator independent of the four organisations that control enrichment worldwide.
Fabricator capability is recorded against reactor type and model line, not against named units,
utilities do not publish fuel contracts. See the fuel chain.
Timeline
- 1 Mar 1955Construction start
- 21 Jul 1958First criticality
- 22 Apr 1959Grid connection
- 22 Apr 1959Commercial operation
- 2 Feb 1980Permanent shutdown
Other units at Marcoule nuclear power plant
| Unit | Status | Gross MW |
|---|---|---|
| Marcoule nuclear power plant Astrid 1 | Cancelled | 600 |
| Marcoule nuclear power plant G1 | Retired | 7 |
| Marcoule nuclear power plant G3 | Retired | 43 |
Sources
- Global Nuclear Power Tracker, Global Energy Monitor, August 2026 release , CC BY 4.0 · retrieved 2026-09-06 · this unit last researched by GEM on 2024-05-15
- GEM.wiki entry (further reading) , CC BY-SA 4.0, linked, not quoted
How these sources are used, including the corrections applied on top of them and what is deliberately left blank · download the underlying data