October 21, 2013
Entergy's Nuclear Limbo Threatens Public Safety
Contact:
Mary lampert, Pilgrim Watch 781-934-0389
Entergy
that operates the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth Massachusetts is
cutting the workforce, failing to invest in key equipment and personnel, and
showing increasing signs of indecision about keeping the reactor running.
Entergy's uncertainty creates a unique safety hazard, and nuclear watchdog
groups focused on Entergy’s Pilgrim, Vermont Yankee and Fitzpatrick (Pilgrim
Watch, Alliance for a Green Economy, Beyond Nuclear, Citizens Awareness
Network, and Vermont Citizens Action Network) have asked the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) to expand an investigation into how Pilgrim’s, Vermont
Yankee’s and Fitzpatrick’s (NY) economic problems impact public safety.
The
attached request is a supplement to a petition filed in March by the watchdog groups.
They pointed to projected financial losses at all three Entergy plants and
asked the NRC to enforce its financial qualifications regulations, which
require companies to generate enough money to maintain a nuclear reactor.
The NRC
agreed on August 7 to investigate Entergy for compliance with the financial
qualifications regulation at the three reactors. The supplement asks NRC to
expand the scope of the investigation to look deeper into the ways Entergy's
decision-making at the plants regarding staffing levels, equipment maintenance,
and safety upgrades is affected by economic distress at the plants. The
supplement also raises concerns that uncertainty at the plants could impact
worker's willingness to stay or to report problems that could impact the
company financially.
Because
Entergy cannot compete with cheaper sources of electricity, it is not able to
turn a profit at Pilgrim and it is cutting costs on the backs of workers and
public safety. Operating a nuclear reactor under financial distress is
dangerous so we are calling on the NRC to do its job and investigate Pilgrim’s
finances before the cost cutting causes an accident.
Background
Entergy
made a bad bet when it bought Pilgrim, Vermont and Fitzpatrick in a newly
deregulated (competitive) market. It bought the reactors for a song and
initially raked in profits. Things went sour when natural gas came along and
wind, and hydro undercut nuclear. Now Pilgrim is running significant deficits,
showing losses on the same order as Vermont.
Moreover,
Pilgrim is operating less due to unplanned shutdowns and power reductions
putting Pilgrim in a deeper financial hole- when a reactor is shut down or
operating at low capacity, they lose money.
Pilgrim
Operational Performance (January 1-September 27, 2013) -
Add another
shutdown October 14th
Power
Generation Level
|
Number of
Days
|
Equivalent
Days at Full Operation
|
0% (shut
down)
|
65
|
0
|
1-50%
|
15
|
3.75
|
51-80%
|
15
|
9.75
|
81-90%
|
21
|
17.85
|
91-99%
|
42
|
39.9
|
100%
(full power)
|
112
|
112
|
TOTAL
|
270
|
183.25
|
Pilgrim
operated at 68% of capacity through September 27; the October 14 shutdown makes
it worse.
Entergy
wants to satisfy its shareholders, but you cannot safely run a nuclear reactor
on the cheap- especially an old reactor with parts breaking down.
Financial
distress threat to public health & safety
Just this
year, Pilgrim has had 18 Event Reports, an unprecedented number for the
industry, and more than ten times the number of shutdowns than the national
average. The shutdowns and required event reports to NRC are clear signs that
Entergy is not making the necessary investments in personnel and maintenance
that are needed to safely run this antique reactor. To put it in
perspective, Pilgrim was built about the time the Beatles appeared on the Ed
Sullivan Show and Lyndon Johnson was President.”
I do not
know about you but I have gone through many household appliances and cars since
the 1960’s.
Absent
substantial investments in aging reactors that Entergy is unwilling to make,
the public is at risk.
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