The Nuclear Regulatory Commission expects this week to release details from the second of three inspections at the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, as part of the regulator’s increased oversight at the Massachusetts plant.
The NRC in September downgraded its safety rating for Pilgrim following a series of unplanned shutdowns and safety relief valve issues at the site. The plant’s rating dropped into into Column 4 of the NRC Action Matrix, which is the lowest rating a facility can have while in operation. The first of three inspections was conducted in January, and NRC concluded in early March that the plant is operating safely.
The second inspection, which took place the first week of April, focused on the plant’s overall corrective action program performance since the last problem was identified and a resolution inspection was completed in August. The third and potentially final inspection is expected later this year or in early 2017.
Owner Entergy said last month it would refuel the Pilgrim plant in 2017 and then shut it down on May 31, 2019. Entergy also closed its Vermont Yankee facility in 2014 and intends to shutter its James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant in New York next January.
