* EDF confident no reactors will close this winter
* French nuclear is key for balancing EU power flows
* EDF shares recover, European power prices lower
* Regulator says it is still investigating the problems(Adds EDF executive comment, market moves, background)
By Geert De Clercq
PARIS, Sept 18 (Reuters) - French utility EDF said onWednesday there was no need to halt any of its nuclear reactorsfor now following the discovery of problems with weldings intheir steam generators last week.
State-controlled EDF said in a statement it had identifiedproblems with 16 generators installed in six operating reactorsin plants in France. It also discovered issues with componentsnot yet in service, notably at the nuclear plant it is buildingin Flamanville, northern France.
EDF, whose shares rose nearly 4% in early trade,said that at the current stage of investigations the issues thathad been identified do not adversely affect the components'fitness for service and do not require immediate action.
A spokeswoman for French nuclear regulator ASN said it hadno comment on EDF's statement and said it was stillinvestigating the weldings problem. She did not say when ASNmight rule on the matter.
"There is still the risk that the French nuclear safetyauthority will decide that unplanned outages will be requiredfor repairs, but today's announcement implies that this wouldonly be the case for just over 10% of EDF's operating reactors,"Barclays said in a note.
Regis Clement, deputy head of EDF's nuclear fleet, toldreporters on a call that not a single component in EDF's nuclearreactors was at risk due to the welding problems.
"The availability of our reactors in the weeks and monthsahead is not at risk. We are confident for the winter ahead," hesaid.
He added that EDF was investigating the issue, but notplanning repairs. He declined to comment on any further impacton the already long-delayed Flamanville construction schedule.
France is a major power exporter and EDF's stable nuclearoutput plays a key role in balancing electricity flows inEurope, providing backup for intermittent solar and wind power.
In the autumn of 2016, the regulator, ASN, ordered EDF toclose up to a third of its reactors for weeks for safety checksand repairs following problems with Framatome-made components,which caused power prices to spike 60 percent in two months.
FRAMATOME INSPECTION
On Wednesday, the ASN spokeswoman also said the regulatorhad asked EDF for additional information and was set to carryout an inspection at the Saint-Marcel plant in western France ofEDF's reactor manufacturing unit Framatome.
A London-based trader said the market remained cautiouswhile it waited for a final ASN decision.
The problems were identified in reactors no. 3 and 4 atBlayais, reactor no. 3 at Bugey, reactor no. 2 at Fessenheim,reactor no. 4 at Dampierre-en-Burly and reactor no. 2 at Paluel,EDF said.
The defects in components not yet in service were found inthe four steam generators and the pressuriser at the Flamanville3 EPR, as well as three new steam generators destined for thosein reactor units no. 5 and 6 at Gravelines, it added.
EDF's share price have recovered most of the losses incurredsince EDF first announced the weldings problems on Sept. 10,when its shares dropped about 7 percent.
French forward power prices were broadly lower in earlytrade as worries about potential reactor closures eased. Thefront-month contract lost 5% to 47 euros a megawatthour (MWh). The year-ahead baseload contract was down1.8% at 52.50 euros/MWh.
British and Dutch gas prices for October delivery fellaround 5% after EDF's comments. Prices jumped last week when theproblems first emerged as demand for gas, which can be used inpower generation, rose on concern about nuclear shutdowns.
The British month-ahead gas price < TRGBNBPMc1>, whichspiked 20% last week, fell 5.7% to 33.15 pence per therm. TheDutch month-ahead gas price < TRNLTTFMc1>, which jumped 18% lastweek, fell 5.5% to 12.95 euros per megawatt hour.(Additional reporting by Sarah White in Paris and SabinaZawadzki in LondonWriting by Geert De ClercqEditing by Richard Lough and David Evans)