Press Release-11-120, NRC Renews Operating Licenses for Salem Nuclear Power Plant for an Additional 20 Years

Press Release-11-120: NRC Renews Operating Licenses for Salem Nuclear Power Plant for an Additional 20 Years

ML11181A130
Person / Time
Site:	Salem
Issue date:	06/30/2011
From:	Office of Public Affairs
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Press Release-11-120
Download: ML11181A130 (2)

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NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200 Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 E-mail: opa.resource@nrc.gov Site: www.nrc.gov Blog: http://public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov No.11-120 June 30, 2011 NRC RENEWS OPERATING LICENSES FOR SALEM NUCLEAR POWER PLANT FOR AN ADDITIONAL 20 YEARS The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has renewed the operating licenses for the Salem Nuclear Generating Station Units 1 and 2 for an additional 20 years. The new licenses will expire for Units 1 and 2 on Aug. 13, 2036, and April 18, 2040, respectively.

The decision to renew the license comes after thorough safety and environmental reviews of the application submitted on Aug. 18, 2009, by the plants operator, PSEG Nuclear, LLC. The Salem plant has two pressurized-water reactors and is located about 18 miles south of Wilmington, Del.

The lessons being learned from events at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station have prompted a comprehensive NRC review of our regulations and practices. The NRC will apply the recommendations from this review, as appropriate, for any changes deemed necessary to improve the safety of operating plants, regardless of whether the plants have been issued renewed operating licenses. Salem, therefore, like all operating plants, will be subject to any rule or policy changes the NRC may make as a result of our post-Fukushima review. The task force reviewing lessons learned from the events in Japan expects to deliver its near-term report and recommendations to the Commission on July 12; a longer-term reviews report is expected within approximately six months.

The NRC held public meetings near the plant on Nov. 5, 2009, and Nov. 17, 2010, to discuss Salems environmental review. In March, the NRC staff concluded there were no environmental impacts that would preclude renewal of the license for environmental reasons.

After careful review of the plants safety systems and specifications, the staff concluded that there were no safety concerns that would preclude license renewal and that the applicant had effectively demonstrated the capability to manage the effects of plant aging. In addition, NRC conducted inspections of the plant to verify information submitted by the applicant. On May 26, the Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards - an independent body of technical experts that advises the Commission - issued its recommendation that license renewal for Salem should be approved.

The safety and environmental review reports, application, and letters relating to the Salem license renewal are available online on the NRC website.

The Salem licenses represent the 69th and 70th reactor licenses renewed by the NRC. A complete listing of renewal applications can be found online at the NRC website.

News releases are available through a free listserv subscription at the following Web address:

http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/listserver.html. The NRC homepage at www.nrc.gov also offers a SUBSCRIBE link. E-mail notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are posted to NRCs website.