The National Nuclear Regulator (NNR) board has granted a Long-Term Operator (LTO) licence for Unit 2 at the Koeberg nuclear power station, in the Western Cape, authorising the unit’s extended operation for an additional 20-year period.

Prior to the LTO approval, Koeberg Unit 2’s licence was due to expire on November 9, 2025.

The regulator granted a similar 20-year extension to Koeberg Unit 1 on July 15, 2024, when it also deferred its LTO decision on Unit 2 until late 2025, owing to the fact that an assessment of the second reactor’s safety case was still ongoing.

The NNR had also agreed to Eskom’s request to have Unit 2’s licence separated from that of Unit 1, whose initial licence was due to expire on July 21, 2024.

The regulator said the decision followed a transparent regulatory process that had included a third set of public hearings held in the Northern and Western Cape provinces in late September and early October 2025 after Eskom submitted additional information related to its LTO application. 

“This licence approval was granted after a rigorous safety assessment which confirmed that all regulatory requirements for the period of long-term operation have been met for Unit 2 and relevant public representations were considered in the decision-making process,” NNR chairperson Protas Phili said in a statement issued on November 6.