Regulatory review - on the brink of renewal

Journal Article · · Electric Perspectives; (United States)

OSTI ID:6594080

Braunstein, L A

Under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, US commercial nuclear energy plants are licensed to operate for 40 years each. Congress selected the 40-year term not on the basis of safety, technical, or environmental issues, but on the basis of the 40-year amortization period generally used by electric utilities for large capital investments. And nuclear power plants may apply to have their licenses renewed. Licenses for about 47 plants - totalling about 34,000 megawatts (MW) of capacity - will expire between 2000 and 2014. By 2000, 63 reactors will be more than 20 years old. Without license renewal, utilities would have to retire about 5,000 MW of capacity every year between 2010 and 2030. Moreover, the Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that renewing licenses of existing nuclear plants for 20 years would save the nation's consumers about $350 billion. The NRC has concluded that the current safety of plants, as they operate today, is adequate. Therefore, in promulgating the final rule, the commission wanted to ensure that the applicants address those technical matters that are unique to the period of plant operation beyond the initial 40 years. For this reason, the rule includes language stating that the relicensing process would examine age-related degradation unique to license renewal. Interpretation of this language is adding regulatory uncertainty to the license renewal process. NRC is reviewing its interpretation; it also has indicated that it would like to smooth out the process through the review of an actual renewal application. Utility executives, however, seem unwilling to make proposals to their boards to commit large capital investments without a clear end-point in sight. It appears that the industry is now hesitating at the renewal office door - with NRC waiting for an application, and the industry holding back.

• OSTI ID: 6594080
• Journal Information: Electric Perspectives; (United States), Journal Name: Electric Perspectives; (United States) Vol. 17:2; ISSN 0364-474X; ISSN ELPED9
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
210700* -- Nuclear Power Plants-- Regulation & Licensing
ELECTRIC UTILITIES
LICENSING
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
POWER PLANTS
PUBLIC UTILITIES
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
THERMAL POWER PLANTS
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES