Does the lack of manpower have a role in the shutdown of French nuclear power plants?

In the midst of the energy crisis, more than half of French nuclear reactors are shut down for maintenance. Emmanuel Macron was annoyed and pointed to EDF. “It is absolutely unacceptable that the people who had the responsibility for the maintenance work of the installed base can explain today that we have not taken our responsibilities”declared the Head of State on September 5th.

A murderous statement that responds to that of the CEO of the French company, Jean-Bernard Lévy. A few days earlier, he had also appointed officials, including the President of the Republic. According to Jean-Bernard Lévy, the French nuclear industry lacks manpower, and the government has a lot to do with it. “Why don’t we have enough trained teams? Because we were told: ‘No, your nuclear fleet will decline. Get ready to close plants’ (…). Obviously, we didn’t not hired people to build others, but to close them”said the CEO of EDF, on August 29.

So who is telling the truth? Regarding the closures of power plants, that is correct: Emmanuel Macron announced them during a speech at the start of his first term. An objective written black on white in the report on the multi-annual energy program, published in 2020. The President of the Republic has since backtracked, but according to nuclear specialists, these public announcements have contributed to aggravating the shortage existing workforce. However, does this lack of manpower have a role in the shutdown of the power stations? As of September 7, 31 out of 56 reactors were not working for two main reasons: corrosion problems (unplanned shutdowns) and maintenance problems (planned shutdowns). In both cases, the lack of qualified personnel is one of the factors contributing to extending the duration of this maintenance. For example, the lack of welders lengthens the time it takes to repair the effects of corrosion.