The Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Monday approved Entergy’s request for additional time to comply with a safety equipment update at the James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant in New York.
The NRC ordered a series of design improvements for American nuclear reactors following the 2011 triple meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan, which occurred after a magnitude 9.0 earthquake triggered a 15-meter tsunami. FitzPatrick features the same boiling-water reactor design as the three reactors that melted down at Fukushima.
The NRC has now approved all three of Entergy’s requests for extensions on post-Fukushima measures, despite challenges from antinuclear groups. The latest approval extends the company’s deadline, from January 2017 to June 2018, for installation of a reliable hardened vent for the plant’s wetwell, a doughnut-shaped reservoir of water at the base of the reactor containment building. The vents are used to remove combustible gases from the reactor building after a severe accident in order to prevent the kinds of explosions that occurred at Fukushima, according to NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan.
“The NRC concluded that a sequence of events leading up to an accident such as the one that occurred at Fukushima Dai-ichi is unlikely in the United States based on the current regulatory requirements and existing plant capabilities,” the NRC said in a letter to Entergy. “Given the plant-specific circumstances at (FitzPatrick), and that completion of the EA-13-109 Phase 1 order requirements by the proposed date is consistent with the ultimate implementation date, established by the order of June 30, 2018, the NRC staff finds that good cause exists to relax the schedule.”
Entergy requested additional time to implement the remaining engineering, design, and training activities required for implementation. Citing economic hardship, the company had planned to shut down FitzPatrick in January 2017. It has since agreed to a tentative deal to sell the plant to Exelon.
Public Citizen Requests FERC Rehearing on FitzPatrick Deal
Public Citizen on Jan. 6 requested that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission reconsider its approval of the $110 million sale.
The consumer advocacy organization in October asked that the commission reject the deal, arguing it would adversely affect New York’s power market. Entergy agreed to sell the facility to Exelon in August, after the New York Public Service Commission (NYPSC) approved Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Clean Energy Standard. That program is projected to pay upstate nuclear power plant operators nearly $8 billion in energy subsidies over its lifetime.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved the deal in December. FERC said the consumer advocate’s focus on Cuomo’s zero-emission-credit program meant the challenge fell outside the scope of the agency’s FitzPatrick review. The deal also requires approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the NYPSC (which approved the sale in November), and the Department of Justice.
Public Citizen Energy Program Director Tyson Slocum has said the group anticipates FERC will deny its request, which would allow it to pursue review in a federal court. Public Citizen also plans to file a Federal Power Act Section 206 complaint, a separate challenge asserting Cuomo’s legislation violates FERC laws.
