NRC Extends MOX Construction Deadline
NS&D Monitor
11/21/2014
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission last week extended the construction authorization deadline for completion of the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility by 10 years until March 30, 2025. Contractor CB&I AREVA MOX Services requested the extension in May after delays in construction due to funding cuts and delays in component deliveries. The scope of work will remain the same. “The NRC published an environmental assessment Oct. 23 that found no significant environmental impact would result from extending the authorization. NRC staff also found that MOX Services has shown good cause to extend the deadline for completion,” according to an NRC release.
Construction of the facility has slowed as the Department of Energy examines the path forward for its plutonium disposition program. The NRC’s construction authorization for the plant had been set to expire on March 30, 2015, prompting MOX Services to extend the request. “This is a routine issue. It falls under procedures that the NRC has developed for licensees. It’s simply an authorization to continue construction,” MOX Services spokesman Bryan Wilkes said in September. “This just allows construction to continue for completion of the facility. It is not a prediction that it will take 10 more years.”
Numerous factors have contributed to the need for an extension, according to MOX Services’ May request to the NRC for an extension. That includes the fact that the plant is a “unique, first-of-a-kind facility,” and annual funding that has been less than the projected funding profile. A shortage of qualified vendors has delayed delivery of components, and a shortage of qualified construction workers has also led to delays. Additionally, there was a two-year gap between the issuance of the NRC Construction Authorization and the start of nuclear construction.
