Romania repairs nuclear plant water pipe

BUCHAREST, Romania, May 31 (UPI) -- Romania's only nuclear power plant at Cernavoda on the Danube River will go back in operation after experts fix a cracked water pipe, authorities said.

Specialists Sunday worked to repair the water pipe on the Unit 1 nuclear reactor, which was shut down Saturday. The crack posed no radiation risk, officials of Romania's Nuclearelectrica operator said.

The reactor will go back on lineTuesday, the officials told the Romanian Mediafax news agency.

The second reactor unit of the Cernavoda plant, on the Danube delta in eastern Romania, was being overhauled and was also out of operation, Pompiliu Budulan, general manager of Nuclearelectrica said.

The Cernavoda nuclear power plant has two 700-megawatt reactors that produce about 17 percent of Romania's electricity needs.

Romania plans to add two more reactors in the Cernavoda plant by 2016.