Feb 11 (Reuters) - Commercial production at Finnish nuclear reactor Olkiluoto 3 is likely to be delayed until 2016, utility Teollisuuden Voima (TVO) warned on Monday, the latest setback in plans for the country's fifth such plant.
TVO said there had been delays in planning the plant's automation system and that it had not yet received proper schedule updates from consortium Areva-Siemens , which is building the reactor.
"We have come to that conclusion that there is no chance that in a year from now we would be test running the plant," TVO spokeswoman Anna Lehtiranta said.
She said basic procedures in planning the automation system, such as submitting the layout outline to the Finnish nuclear safety authority, had not yet been carried out.
The reactor was originally scheduled to start operations in 2009, but has been hit by repeated delays and soaring costs. Areva's last estimate was for the reactor to be ready by 2014, but TVO said last July that such a time frame was impossible.
Areva said it would comment later.
The International Chamber of Commerce's arbitration court is processing a dispute on cost overruns between the consortium and TVO.
TVO's biggest owners are forest group UPM-Kymmene and utility Fortum.