British Nuclear Fuels (BNF) said it was to shut down three nuclear reactors due to an accident in one of its plants in which 12 radioactive fuel rods were still missing.
The reactors at the Chapelcross plant near Annan in Scotland will be gradually shut down over the next week after the company revealed that 24 fuel rods had dropped 15 metres (50 feet) inside a discharge chute in the plant on July 5.
"We have been able to locate half of the rods that have been dislodged and we desperately need to find the other 12. By shutting down the three remaining reactors we should be able to do this sooner," a spokesman for the plant said.
A BNF spokesman insisted there was no danger to public safety.
The uranium rods fell during a routine operation to change the fuel cells.
A spokeswoman for environmental protest group Greenpeace denounced the accident as "a timely reminder of the dangers of nuclear power.
"It should act as a warning signal to the government to stop its plans for a nuclear revival and invest in clean, green power and energy efficiency instead," she added.
The Scottish parliament's shadow deputy environment minister, Ms Fiona McLeod, joined the criticism, saying the latest incident was "simply another example of the inherent dangers of nuclear power." AFP