A Nuclear Regulatory Commission Atomic Safety and Licensing Board will hear oral arguments on petitions for an adjudicatory hearing on Interim Storage Partners' license application for an interim facility to store spent nuclear fuel in Andrews County, Texas.
The FY2019 annual fees are increasing for operating reactors, research and test reactors, and some materials users. Annual fees will decrease for spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning, fuel facilities, select materials users, U.S. Department of Energy transportation activities, and the DOE Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act Program.
U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry was on hand for the announcement of the closing of approximately $1.67 billion in additional Department of Energy loan guarantees for the Vogtle 3 and 4 units, which Georgia Power has predicted will cost about $25 billion to complete, or nearly twice their original estimated cost.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials in Atlanta recently announced the selection of Kenya Carrington and Patrick Heher as resident inspectors for the construction of Vogtle Units 3 and 4, new units being built near Waynesboro, Ga.
Proposed annual fees for FY2019 have increased for operating reactors, some materials users, and Department of Energy transportation activities.
The oral arguments on Jan. 23 and, if necessary, Jan. 24, will be open to the public. Signs, banners, posters, demonstrations, and displays will not be permitted by NRC policy, according to the agency.
The Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report includes a table showing that the entire period from shutdown of the plant to license termination will last 60 years.
The agreement signed Sept. 25 transfers regulatory authority over certain radioactive materials to the state. NRC transferred responsibility for licensing, rulemaking, inspection, and enforcement activities needed to regulate source material involved in uranium or thorium milling and the management and disposal of milling waste.
NRC is accepting additional public comments through Oct. 19 on environmental issues to be considered in its environmental impact statement, and the agency has given stakeholders until Oct. 29 to request a hearing.
"This land and groundwater cleanup is an important puzzle piece in the larger Hanford Project," said EPA Regional Administrator Chris Hladick. "Since these areas are virtually on the banks of the Columbia River, this work to further reduce toxic and radiological threats to the river is particularly important."
The MEITNER projects will leverage design, new manufacturing processes, and technologies to lower costs and increase the competitiveness of nuclear power; these funded projects will support advanced reactor designs that achieve lower construction cost and autonomous operations while improving safety.
The eight-month test involved a waste transportation and storage cask fresh off the assembly line being loaded with three surrogate fuel rod assemblies from the United States, Spain, and South Korea and then traveling from Spain to Colorado and back again by truck, ship, and train.
The proposal comes from Holtec International, who is seeking an initial 40-year license for an underground storage facility that could accept and temporarily store used nuclear fuel accruing at reactors across the United States.
PHOTO: DOC SEARLS
In a unanimous vote Jan. 11, the California Public Utilities Commission approved Pacific Gas and Electric Company's request to retire the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant by 2025.
"Brookfield's acquisition of Westinghouse reaffirms our position as the leader of the global nuclear industry," Westinghouse President & CEO José Emeterio Gutiérrez said.
The Georgia Public Service Commission unanimously approved the company's recommendation Dec. 21 to complete the first new nuclear units in the United States in 30 years.
China now has 38 nuclear power reactors in operation and 19 others under construction, IAEA reports.
NRC said in April, an electrical component on a Catawba Unit 2 emergency diesel generator failed during a scheduled test. NRC said its inspectors reviewed the event and determined that the plant staff had failed to adequately develop and adjust preventive maintenance activities using operating experience, maintenance history, and performance records.
"Advanced nuclear energy projects like Vogtle are the kind of important energy infrastructure projects that support a reliable and resilient grid, promote economic growth, and strengthen our energy and national security," Energy Secretary Rick Perry said.
The board of directors at Santee Cooper on July 31 suspended construction work on Units 2 and 3 at the V.C. Summer Nuclear Station in Jenkinsville, S.C. -- a decision the company reports will save is customers nearly $7 billion.