NRC denies challenge to Three Mile Island’s emergency planRadwaste SolutionsWaste ManagementOctober 9, 2020, 12:12PM|Radwaste Solutions StaffThe Nuclear Regulatory Commission has rejected a petition by Three Mile Island Alert (TMIA) challenging Exelon’s request to revise its site emergency plan for the closed Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania. Exelon submitted a request to the NRC to amend its TMI-1 license to reflect the reduced risks of the defueled reactor, which was permanently shut down in September 2019.In an order issued on October 8, the NRC commissioners upheld a decision by an NRC Atomic Safety and Licensing Board denying TMIA’s petition to intervene and request a hearing in the license amendment request. That decision, issued on January 23, 2020, found that the antinuclear group had not established standing in the case and that its contentions were inadmissible.ExpandTags:decommissioningenergysolutionsexelonfirstenergylicensingtmi-1tmi-2Share:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
NRC amends fees for FY 2020Nuclear NewsPower & OperationsJune 24, 2020, 8:57AM|Nuclear News StaffThe Nuclear Regulatory Commission is amending its regulations for the licensing, inspection, special projects, and annual fees that it will charge applicants and licensees for fiscal year 2020. The FY 2020 final fee rule, published in the June 19 Federal Register, includes fees required by law to recover approximately 90 percent of the NRC’s annual budget authority. A proposed rule was published for public comment on February 18 of this year, with a March 19 due date. The final rule goes into effect on August 18.ExpandTags:annual feescovid-19inspectionlicensingspecial projectsShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Metropolis Works receives 40-year license renewalNuclear NewsPower & OperationsApril 2, 2020, 9:16AM|Nuclear News StaffThe Nuclear Regulatory Commission on March 24 relicensed the only uranium conversion plant in the United States, Honeywell International’s Metropolis Works.Metropolis Works can now operate until March 24, 2060, potentially logging operations for over a century. Built in 1958 to produce uranium hexafluoride (UF6) for the U.S. government, Metropolis Works began selling UF6 on the commercial market in 1968.ExpandTags:fuel cyclelicensingnuclear fuel working groupu conversionShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Nuclear Plant Construction Delay and Cost 3ANS Nuclear CafeNovember 2, 2018, 5:24PM|Will Davis Reactor vessel delivered to Calvert Cliffs; from brochure in Will Davis collection.The year 1971 saw a continuation of the general trend of rising capital costs for all types of power plants, described by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in its publication for 1971 as having "risen rather rapidly." According to the AEC, the aggregate major causes for the increases in costs specific to nuclear electric power plants were as follows, with author's analysis accompanying each:Go to ArticleTags:aecamerican nuclear societyatomic energy commissionauthorscalvert cliffs decisionlessons learnedlicensingnuclear historynuclear technologyreactorsthree mile islandunited stateswill davisShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
SNUPPS - Nuclear Plant Construction at the Cutting Edge, 1972ANS Nuclear CafeMarch 17, 2015, 6:42PM|ANS Nuclear Cafe Callaway Energy Center - one of the completed, historic SNUPPS nuclear plants. Photo courtesy AMEREN Missouri.by Will DavisGo to ArticleTags:licensingnuclear historypwrswestinghouseShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Research Reactor License Renewal ChallengesANS Nuclear CafeJuly 23, 2014, 4:57PM|Rod AdamsThe process for renewing research and test reactor (RTR) licenses in the United States has been subject to lengthy delays and periodic backlogs since the early 1980s. Despite the apparent time invested in improvement efforts, the process does not seem to be getting better very fast. The difficulty, schedule uncertainty, and cost of renewing research reactor licenses adds to the burden of owning and operating research reactors. The scale of the challenge may contribute to regrettable institutional decisions that maintaining operable facilities is not worth the trouble.Go to ArticleTags:educationlicensingrod adamsShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Nuclear Power Uprates: What, how, when, and will there be more?ANS Nuclear CafeJune 26, 2014, 5:55PM|Will Davis Calvert Cliffs Plant; two unit nuclear generating station. Baltimore Gas and Electric Company brochure, October 1980.I received an email this morning (in the midst of my daily avalanche of promotional emails) with a link to a brief story about uprating of nuclear plants worldwide (in other words, increasing the power output of an already-built plant)-what had been done, how many were planned, and so forth. I wondered to myself just how many nuclear plants in the United States had been uprated, and when they started-and given the recent hullabaloo over the recent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency CO2 emission policy, it seems like (in addition to discussing small modular reactors) we might also want to toss the uprate card back on the table. Instead of flat or only slightly rising demand for electricity, we may face a steady lowering of generating capacity as plants that are high CO2 emitters (and thus violators) get shut down. Sure, renewables will play a part, and so will increased efficiency, but having more power is better than having less, or too little. I found no quick and easy reference for the kind of analysis I wanted, so I took a little time and did it myself.Go to ArticleTags:licensingnuclear historyShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Kewaunee: What does the future hold?ANS Nuclear CafeMay 9, 2013, 9:00AM|Will DavisShortly after 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 7, 2013, the operators at Dominion Resources' Kewaunee nuclear power plant opened its output breaker, disconnecting the turbine generator from the grid for the last time after just under 40 years of operation. Shutdown of the reactor followed, and the plant entered what for some is an uncertain (even if pre-ordained) future-a long-term storage period, followed eventually after many years by the complete dismantling and removal of the plant.Go to ArticleTags:licensingnuclear historynuclear powerwill davisShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
2012 ~ The year that was in nuclear energyANS Nuclear CafeDecember 6, 2012, 7:00AM|Dan YurmanPlus a few pointers to what's in store for 2013Go to ArticleTags:chinadepartment of energyfukushimaindiairaniran uranium enrichmentlicensingmars space rovernew nuclear constructionnuclear energynuclear opponentsnuclear powernuclear regulatory commissionradiationrussiasan onofre nuclear generating stationsmall modular reactorstennessee valley authorityu.s. congressShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Video: NRC Inspection at Davis-Besse Nuclear Power StationANS Nuclear CafeOctober 29, 2012, 6:00AM|ANS Nuclear CafeThe Davis-Besse nuclear power plant, operated by FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company, is located on the shores of Lake Erie about 20 miles east of Toledo, Ohio. The 908-MWe pressurized water reactor came online on July 31, 1978.Go to ArticleTags:davis-besselicensingnuclear regulatory commissionShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Update on Nuclear Waste Confidence Court RulingANS Nuclear CafeOctober 22, 2012, 6:00AM|Jim HopfAs I discussed in a June 20 ANS Nuclear Cafe post, a federal appeals court rejected the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's new nuclear Waste Confidence rule, and ordered the NRC to perform a more thorough evaluation that addresses potential risks and health and environmental impacts of very long term storage of nuclear waste at nuclear sites (until a final disposal option is developed).Go to ArticleTags:dc perspectivedry cask storageenvironmental benefits of nuclearenvironmental impact statementlicensingnuclear regulatory commissionspent fuelwaste confidencewaste confidence rulingShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
The NRC chair and Yucca MountainANS Nuclear CafeJune 20, 2012, 5:00PM|Jim HopfSeveral important events have recently occurred involving the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository, and the interactions between the two.Go to ArticleTags:dc perspectivedepartment of energylicensingnuclear regulatory commissionyucca mountainShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
No easy road for U.S. nuclear new buildANS Nuclear CafeMay 3, 2012, 5:59AM|Dan YurmanGetting the NRC license is just the first stepGo to ArticleTags:department of energylicensingnuclear opponentsnuclear regulatory commissionnuclear technologyShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Freeze Pilgrim debate tonight: Follow on TwitterANS Nuclear CafeApril 25, 2012, 8:00PM|ANS Nuclear CafeThis evening there will be a debate on a nuclear referendum that is on the town ballot in Plymouth, Mass. The referendum calls for a halt to relicensing the Pilgrim nuclear power plant, pending implementation of Fukushima lessons learned.Go to ArticleTags:educationfukushimalessons learnedlicensingnuclear opponentsreactor designsunion of concerned scientists (ucs)Share:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
INPO certifies Southern operator trainingANS Nuclear CafeApril 11, 2012, 6:00AM|ANS Nuclear CafeDigital control room simulator at US NRCWith all the justifiable excitement about the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's granting licenses to Southern Company to build two 1,100-MW Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear reactors, it also is worth noting the progress the utility is making to train operators to run the new plants.Go to ArticleTags:licensingShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
The Nuclear Debate On the RoadANS Nuclear CafeApril 10, 2012, 6:00AM|Howard ShafferPlymouth, Massachusetts, "America's Home Town," is the place where the pilgrims landed, and is also the home of the Pilgrim nuclear power plant. On March 29, a forum was held in Plymouth to discuss a non-binding ballot question for the town election in May. The question is whether or not to freeze the plant's relicensing process until all the Fukushima fixes are completed.Go to ArticleTags:entergylicensingnuclear opponentsview from vermontShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
NRC approves two new reactors in South CarolinaANS Nuclear CafeMarch 30, 2012, 7:04PM|Laura ScheeleThe U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on March 30 voted to clear the way for its Office of New Reactors to issue two licenses for two new AP1000 reactors at the V.C. Summer site in Parr, S.C. This marks the NRC's second approval of nuclear units to be built in the United States in two months. In February, the NRC approved a license for Atlanta-based Southern Company's Vogtle project, in Waynesboro, Ga. The NRC had not issued any new reactor licenses since 1978.Go to ArticleTags:licensingnew nuclear constructionnuclear regulatory commissionu.s. nuclear regulatory commissionvc summerShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Federal judge: State can't shut down Vermont Yankee over spent fuelANS Nuclear CafeMarch 20, 2012, 3:49PM|ANS Nuclear CafeThe plant dodges another bullet at least for nowGo to ArticleTags:bwrseconomic benefits of nuclearentergylicensingnuclear regulatory commissionspent fuelShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
NRC/Fukushima hearing in US Senate on ThursdayANS Nuclear CafeMarch 12, 2012, 6:00AM|ANS Nuclear CafeA hearing titled "Lessons from Fukushima One Year Later: NRC's Implementation of Recommendations for Enhancing Nuclear Reactor Safety in the 21st Century" will be held in the U.S. Senate on Thursday, March 15, at 10:00 AM EDT. The hearing will be a joint session of the Senate's Committee on Environment and Public Works and the Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety.Go to ArticleTags:earthquakefukushimalessons learnedlicensingnuclear regulatory commissionradiationspent fuelShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Indian PM Singh claims anti-nuclear protests funded by U.S. NGOsANS Nuclear CafeMarch 1, 2012, 7:00AM|Dan YurmanKundankulam nuclear project jammed in new controversiesGo to ArticleTags:educationengineeringindiaknowledge transferlicensingnpcilreactor designsShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook