An EnergySolutions subsidiary expects to complete decommissioning of the La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor in Wisconsin in the first quarter of 2020, according to a revised plan submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The NRC in May OK’d transfer of the license for the reactor from the Dairyland Power Cooperative to LaCrosseSolutions, which is acting as a “steward” in order to expedite decommissioning of the facility that closed in 1987. The plant was placed into SAFSTOR in 1991, though some dismantlement operations were allowed in following years, including removal and disposal of more than 2 million pounds of metallic waste.
The schedule of remaining work, as reported Friday to the NRC, sets out a list of milestones on the way to completion, including finishing stack demolition in the third quarter of this year, completing building demolition in the fourth quarter of 2017, and wrapping up site restoration in the first quarter of 2019. What remains after that appears to be largely paperwork, ending with transferring the license back to Dairyland and NRC termination of the facility license, both in first-quarter 2020.
It was not immediately clear how the schedule differs from the prior timeline. Dairyland Power deferred questions on decommissioning cost and schedule changes to EnergySolutions, which was still looking into the matter as of press time Tuesday.
From 1996 to 2015, Dairyland incurred $42.4 million in expenses for decommissioning operations, company spokeswoman Deb Mirasola said Tuesday.
The latest cost estimate to complete decommissioning the facility is redacted in the report. The amount for site restoration, including the performance baseline and contingency funding, is projected at $2.9 million in 2015 dollars.
The funding would cover labor, personnel, materials, equipment, professional services, waste transport, and disposal.
The prior cost projection, from March 2013, forecast the cost to complete decommissioning at $90.7 million in 2013 dollars.
