Pilgrim
The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth, Massachusetts, a boiling water reactor that shut down in 2019 and is now in decommissioning.
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Decommissioning
Entergy Completes Sale of Pilgrim Plant to Holtec
Entergy Corp. on Monday completed the sale of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts to Holtec International for an undisclosed amount of money. This follows the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s approval last Thursday of the transfer of Pilgrim’s federal operational and spent fuel storage licenses. “The successful Pilgrim transaction demonstrates continued progress on Entergy’s […]
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Decommissioning
NRC Approves Pilgrim License Transfer to Holtec
Holtec International said Friday it will complete its acquisition of the retired Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts “as soon as practicable,” after receiving the necessary authorization from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The federal agency on Aug. 22 approved the transfer of Pilgrim’s operational and spent fuel storage licenses from plant owner Entergy to […]
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Commercial Decommissioning
Massachusetts Objects to Upcoming NRC Order Allowing Pilgrim Plant License Transfer
The commonwealth of Massachusetts is objecting to an upcoming U.S Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff order allowing the license transfer for the retired Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station. The order, expected as early as this week, would enable owner Entergy to sell the plant to Holtec International for decommissioning. The ruling could come even before the federal […]
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Decommissioning
Massachusetts Plans Stay Request on License Transfer Approval for Pilgrim Plant
The commonwealth of Massachusetts has signaled it will request a hold on the anticipated approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission this week of the license transfer application for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station. Staff at the federal regulator indicated in a filing last week that it was prepared around Aug. 21 to authorize the […]
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Decommissioning
NRC Readies to Approve Pilgrim Plant Sale
Staff at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory commission said in a notice Tuesday it plans to approve the license transfer for the retired Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts. The license transfer will enable owner Entergy to sell the single-reactor facility on Cape Cod to Holtec International for decommissioning. Staff expects to formally approve the transfer […]
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Reactor Licensing & Regulation
NRC Urged to Proceed With Pilgrim Plant License Transfer Review
By John Stang The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission should disregard the commonwealth of Massachusetts’ request for a 90-day stay on its review of the license transfer application for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, the plant’s owner and prospective buyer said Monday. Entergy and Holtec International argued that the delay is not needed even as they […]
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Decommissioning
NRC Urged to Proceed With Pilgrim Plant License Transfer Review
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission should disregard the commonwealth of Massachusetts’ request for a 90-day stay on its review of the license transfer application for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, the plant’s owner and prospective buyer said Monday. “The Commission should deny this Motion because it is inconsistent with NRC rules and practice, unsupported by […]
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Reactor Licensing & Regulation
Mass. Wants Temporary Freeze on NRC Ruling for Pilgrim Plant License Transfer
The commonwealth of Massachusetts on Thursday asked the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to place a 90-day stay on its consideration of the license transfer application for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station. The hold is needed to allow officials from Massachusetts and the plant’s owner and prospective buyer to reach a potential settlement addressing concerns the […]
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Decommissioning
Pilgrim Plant Shutdown Impacts Entergy 2Q Earnings
Entergy on Wednesday said it took a revenue hit from the closure of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts during the second quarter of 2019. Even so, the New Orleans-based power company’s Entergy Wholesale Commodities (EWC) business slimmed its losses in the latest earning period. Entergy Wholesale Commodities reported a $26 million loss, or […]
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Decommissioning
Pilgrim Plant Shutdown Impacts Entergy 2Q Earnings
Entergy on Wednesday said it took a revenue hit from the closure of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts during the second quarter of 2019. Even so, the New Orleans-based power company’s Entergy Wholesale Commodities (EWC) business slimmed its losses in the latest earning period. Entergy Wholesale Commodities reported a $26 million loss, or […]
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Decommissioning
NRC Approves Alternate Uses for Pilgrim Power Plant Decommissioning Trust
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on July 22 issued a regulatory exemption allowing Entergy Nuclear Operations to use money in the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station’s decommissioning trust fund for spent fuel management and site restorations activities. Entergy requested the exemption in November 2018 for the Massachusetts facility. On July 1, the NRC staff issued an environmental […]
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Decommissioning
Pilgrim Plant Decommissioning Trust Can Cover Other Work, NRC Staff Finds
Diverting some money within the decommissioning trust fund for the retired Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts would not undermine the intended function of the account, according to staff at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Agency staff on July 1 issued an environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact (FONSI) for Entergy’s application for […]
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Decommissioning
Pilgrim Plant Decommissioning Trust Can Cover Other Work, NRC Staff Finds
Diverting some money within the decommissioning trust fund for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts would not undermine the intended function of the account, according to staff at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Agency staff on July 1 issued an environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact (FONSI) for Entergy’s application for a […]
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Decommissioning
NRC Readies Public Meetings on Decommissioning Advisory Boards
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission plans through fall to hold 11 public meetings in communities near nuclear power plants that have closed or are nearing the end of the service life. The purpose of the meetings is to discuss best practices for community boards that would provide advice on decommissioning of the facilities, as required […]
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Decommissioning
NRC Approves License Transfer for Closed New Jersey Nuclear Plant
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Thursday approved the transfer of the licenses for Exelon’s retired Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station in New Jersey to Holtec International. Holtec expects by next month to complete its acquisition of the facility, announced about a month prior to its closure in September 2018. It will own the trust […]
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Decommissioning
Holtec Anticipates NRC Approval Within Weeks on Nuclear Plant License Transfers
Holtec International anticipates the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission will within six weeks approve license transfer applications for two retired nuclear power plants, after which it would buy the properties for decommissioning, a company executive said Monday. Agency staff should in two weeks rule on the application for Holtec to assume the license for Exelon’s Oyster […]
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Commercial Decommissioning
Pilgrim Shuts Down for Good
The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station shut down permanently last week. Entergy hopes by the end of the year to sell the Cape Cod property to Holtec International, which would assume all responsibility for cleanup and spent fuel management, along with the trust fund that will pay for the work. The final curtain fell after deadline last […]
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Decommissioning
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station Shut Down for Good
The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station shut down permanently late Friday afternoon. Entergy hopes by the end of the year to sell the Cape Cod property to Holtec International, which would assume all responsibility for cleanup and spent fuel management, along with the trust fund that will pay for the work. In 2015, the New Orleans-based power […]
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Decommissioning
Pilgrim Plant Prepares to Shut Down
By John Stang The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts was preparing to permanently shut down Friday, ahead of what its owner and prospective buyer hope will be a rapid decommissioning. “#FYI Tomorrow, Friday, May 31, control room operators at @PilgrimNuclear Power Station will shut down the reactor for the final time,” Entergy tweeted on […]
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Decommissioning
Entergy Seeks Reduced Insurance Levels at Pilgrim After Retirement
Entergy has asked the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to authorize the reduction of insurance for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts following its closure a few weeks from now. In two March 25 letters, the New Orleans-based power company asked the agency to by April 1, 2020, approve exemptions to federal regulations on financial […]
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Decommissioning
Massachusetts Says it Has Right to Intervene in Pilgrim Plant License Transfer
The commonwealth of Massachusetts this week forcefully pushed back against the suggestion that it not be given party status in the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission review of the license transfer application for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station. Power company Entergy is scheduled to close Pilgrim by May 31, then hopes this year to sell the […]
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Decommissioning
House Members Seek $25M for DOE Interim Rad Waste Storage Program
Fifteen Democratic members of Congress from states with retired or soon-to-close nuclear power plants this week urged leading House appropriators to provide $25 million to help the Department of Energy establish interim storage of radioactive waste. Two corporate teams are seeking Nuclear Regulatory Commission licenses for sites that could hold used fuel commercial power plants […]
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Decommissioning
Companies Oppose Interventions in Pilgrim Plant License Transfer Application
The owner and prospective buyer of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts said this week that the state and a local advocacy group should not be allowed to intervene in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission license transfer review needed for the sale to proceed. In separate filings Monday with the NRC, power company Entergy and […]
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Decommissioning
SNC-Lavalin Legal Woes in Canada Not a Sure Red Light to U.S. Business
By John Stang and Wayne Barber While it faces a potential 10-year ban on contracts with the Canadian government, SNC-Lavalin’s legal woes north of the border do not appear to automatically translate to similar troubles in the United States. The Montreal-based engineering and construction multinational is the parent company to Department of Energy contractor Atkins […]
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Decommissioning
Wrap Up: Mass. Lawmakers Foiled in Request for NRC Answers on Pilgrim Decommissioning
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said last week it could not answer a list of questions and concerns raised by three members of Massachusetts’ delegation to Congress regarding the license transfer application for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station. “Because the application is the subject of a current adjudication, the Commission must remain impartial during the […]
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Decommissioning
Mass. Lawmakers Foiled in Request for NRC Answers on Pilgrim Decommissioning
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said last week it could not answer a list of questions and concerns raised by three members of Massachusetts’ delegation to Congress regarding the license transfer application for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station. “Because the application is the subject of a current adjudication, the Commission must remain impartial during the […]
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Budget & Policy
Wrap Up: Senate Committee Again Backs DOE Nuclear Energy Nominee
For the second time, the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Thursday approved four nominees for senior Department of Energy positions, including Rita Baranwal as assistant secretary for nuclear energy. By voice vote Thursday, the panel advanced all four to the full Senate. A committee press release did not say when the Senate […]
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Decommissioning
Pilgrim Plant Raised Out of Lowest NRC Safety Rating
By John Stang The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission this week moved Entergy’s soon-to-be-retired Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station out of the lowest safety ranking allowed for an operational power plant. “We noted several areas of sustained performance improvement including: (1) significant reduction in human performance- related events that adversely affected plant safety; (2) more effective and timely corrective […]
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Reactor Licensing & Regulation
Pilgrim Plant Raised Out of Lowest NRC Safety Rating
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission this week moved Entergy’s soon-to-be-retired Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station out of the lowest safety ranking allowed for an operational power plant. The agency had indicated last month it was preparing to elevate the facility from Column 4 to Column 1 of the its Action Matrix. The agency in 2015 placed the single-reactor […]
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Decommissioning
Mass. AG Petitions to Intervene in NRC Review of Pilgrim Deal
The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office and a local watchdog organization this week petitioned for intervention and a hearing in the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s review of the license transfer application for the nearly retired Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station. An affirmative decision from the NRC is required for owner Entergy to sell the plant to Holtec […]





