France temporarily shuts down three nuclear reactors over heatwave

France's main energy provider on Sunday said three nuclear reactors had been temporarily shut down and eight others were operating at reduced power due to the heatwave sweeping France.

"Due to the weather conditions and to comply with regulations on (cooling water) discharges, and thus to protect the environment," reactors at the Golfech, Bugey and Chooz plants, located on the banks of the Garonne, Rhone and Meuse rivers respectively, have been shut down, the EDF energy group told AFP.

The measure is an environmental protection requirement to avoid discharging too much hot water into rivers already warming from the heatwave.

Power plants critical to the country's electricity production use river water to cool their reactors, which heats the water that is then released back into the river.