IZMIR

Strikes at nuclear power plants in France have affected 12 of the country's 18 nuclear power plants, raising fears that the country's energy crisis will worsen.

Employees at the Chooz-B nuclear power plant in Ardennes city have also joined the strikes that started two weeks ago, causing a reduction in energy production and delays to reactor maintenance.

Negotiations on salary increases between France's main energy provider, EDF, and labor unions have not yet yielded any results, and according to the Liberation newspaper, any further delays to production would heighten the risk of blackouts over the winter.

Emmanuelle Wargon, the head of the French energy regulator CRE, has requested that EDF put any working reactors that do not require maintenance into service.

Wargon similarly echoed her concern that strikes would delay plant output and if no solution is found, she said the country could face serious electricity supply problems this winter.

Employees at three hydroelectric power plants in the country also went on strike while workers in recycling centers, the heating sector and other energy companies are demanding salary increases with union support.