Commercial Decommissioning

Editor’s note. Benjamin S. Weiss is leaving the Exchange Monitor to pursue another opportunity. RadWaste Monitor will continue to cover civilian nuclear waste programs.  Happy Friday, nuke-watchers. It’s a bittersweet one: it’s your RadWaste reporter’s last day on the job before he moves into a new role covering Congress full-time. I’m happy to have begun […]

A New York state legislator on Friday brought forward a bill that, if made law, would prevent the company decommissioning a shuttered nuclear plant there from discharging radioactive wastewater into the Hudson River. The measure introduced by State Sen. Peter Harckham (D), would amend state law to make it illegal “to throw, drain, run or […]

The former site of a Wisconsin nuclear power plant is officially safe to use for other activities, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced in a press release last week. NRC released the site of the decommissioned  La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor for “unrestricted public use,” the agency said in the Friday press release. Such a designation […]

Although its 2022 losses were less severe than a year ago, Constellation Energy, Baltimore, was still in the red thanks to higher operating costs and lower revenues, the utility said in earnings reports published last week. Net losses for Constellation, the company that spun off from Exelon’s generation business in February 2022 and which manages […]

Although its 2022 losses were less severe than a year ago, Constellation Energy, Baltimore, was still in the red thanks to higher operating costs and lower revenues, the utility said in earnings reports published last week. Net losses for Constellation, the company that spun off from Exelon’s generation business in February 2022 and which manages […]

Happy Friday, nuke-watchers. Your RadWaste Monitor reporter is still reeling from the Eagles’ tragic loss last Sunday — but at least we got Rihanna. Before we head off into Presidents’ Day weekend, here are some other stories we were tracking from across the civilian nuclear power space this week. Regulatory standards used to develop the […]

The newly-elected governor of Massachusetts last week signaled that she would stand against a proposal from Holtec International that would see irradiated wastewater from a shuttered nuclear power plant released into the Cape Cod Bay, local media reported. Speaking at a community event in South Yarmouth, Mass., Gov. Maura Healey (D) said that the Bay […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission met recently with Holtec International to discuss the agency’s concerns about the company’s proposed use of a shuttered New York nuclear power plant’s dedicated decommissioning fund, a regulatory filing shows. According to a summary of NRC’s Nov. 2 call with Holtec, published Monday, the nuclear services company gave the agency a […]

Responding to a scathing letter from the government’s environmental regulator, the company in charge of decommissioning a Massachusetts nuclear power plant insisted Monday that it was not planning to discharge irradiated wastewater from the facility in violation of a federal permit. In a Monday letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Holtec International sought to […]

After the Environmental Protection Agency last week threatened to throw the book at Holtec International over proposed wastewater discharges from a Massachusetts nuclear power plant, the decommissioning company is preparing a response, a spokesperson said Monday. Holtec will “respond accordingly” to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Dec. 5 letter reiterating concerns about the company’s proposal […]

The increase in prices to bury low-level radioactive waste at disposal sites across the country should affect nuclear power plant operators’ decommissioning cost estimates, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a recent report. NRC’s report, published Tuesday on the Federal Register, serves as the agency’s annual update to low-level waste (LLRW) disposal cost projections at […]

The increase in prices to bury low-level radioactive waste at disposal sites across the country should affect nuclear power plant operators’ decommissioning cost estimates, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a recent report. NRC’s report, published Tuesday on the Federal Register, serves as the agency’s annual update to low-level waste (LLRW) disposal cost projections at […]

After the Department of Energy last week refused to fund a proposal to restart a recently-shuttered nuclear power plant in Michigan, the company in charge of the facility said it planned to move ahead with decommissioning, according to a spokesperson. A Holtec International spokesperson confirmed to the Exchange Monitor Friday that DOE had rejected the […]

The shrinking U.S. nuclear fleet was factored into the decreased number of violations found during security inspections last year, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said this week in a report to Congress. Of 176 inspections conducted at nuclear plants during the 2021 calendar year, NRC identified 66 security violations of mostly low severity, the agency said […]

Entergy Corp., New Orleans, reported this week losses in its nuclear power segment during the third quarter of 2022, which it attributed in part to the recent closure of a Michigan nuclear power plant, according to a press release. According to an earnings press release published Wednesday, losses at Entergy Wholesale Commodities (EWC), which manages […]

Entergy Corp., New Orleans, reported Wednesday losses in its nuclear power segment during the third quarter of 2022, which it attributed in part to the recent closure of a Michigan nuclear power plant, according to a press release. According to an earnings press release published Wednesday, losses at Entergy Wholesale Commodities (EWC), which manages Entergy’s […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission wants Holtec International to explain why the company has proposed giving itself the power to manage investments from a shuttered New York nuclear plant’s decommissioning trust fund — something the agency said is illegal. In a request for additional information document sent to Holtec Oct. 21, NRC took issue with a […]

One of two on-site facilities storing spent fuel from a California nuclear power plant can keep operating for another decade or so, the Golden State’s coastal land regulator said last week. The 12-member California Coastal Commission voted 9-0 Oct. 13 to approve a 13 year extension on state permits for the storage pad, located at […]

The two partners in Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth, the incumbent cleanup team at the Department of Energy Portsmouth Site in Ohio, are rivals in pursuit of the new Decontamination & Decommissioning Contract, industry sources said this week. BWX Technologies is leading a team along with Jacobs and APTIM that is vying for the follow-on Portsmouth decommissioning contract, […]

Ahead of the midterm elections, plans for disposing of spent nuclear fuel currently stranded at a California nuclear power plant are among the issues at play in one battle to represent the Golden State in Congress. The issue of nuclear waste disposal is especially personal to the candidates for California’s 49th congressional district — incumbent […]

A California congressman who has been a vocal proponent of a federal nuclear waste solution took some credit this week for the Department of Energy’s recently-unveiled interim storage funding opportunity, according to a press release. Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.), who counts San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) among his constituents in California’s 49th congressional district, […]

A California congressman who has been a vocal proponent of a federal nuclear waste solution took some credit Tuesday for the Department of Energy’s recently-unveiled interim storage funding opportunity, according to a press release. Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.), who counts San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) among his constituents in California’s 49th congressional district, “helped […]

The utility in charge of California’s last operating nuclear power plant on Tuesday changed its tune about the facility’s planned closure, asking the Department of Energy for extra time to apply for a federal bailout to keep it online. Diablo Canyon Power Plant operator Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) “appreciates the Department of Energy’s efforts […]

Happy Friday, nuke-watchers. With a long weekend behind us and a regular old weekend ahead, here are some other stories from across the civilian nuclear power space that RadWaste Monitor was tracking this week. Next week in Vegas: Exchange Monitor’s Decommissioning Strategy Forum Mark your calendars — Monday, June 6 is the start of the […]

Happy Friday, nuke-watchers. Before we head into the weekend, here are some other stories from across the civilian nuclear power space that RadWaste Monitor was tracking this week. Pilgrim community votes to oppose Holtec wastewater discharge Communities surrounding a Massachusetts nuclear power plant under decommissioning voiced their displeasure during local elections this week with Holtec […]

Orano’s company-led inspection of its own waste storage canisters at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station revealed no degradation after nearly two decades, the company in charge of waste management at the site said this week. During the months-long inspection that began in November, Orano USA found no signs of chloride-induced stress corrosion in the […]

Happy Friday, nuke-watchers. Before we head into the weekend, here are some other stories RadWaste Monitor was tracking across the civilian nuclear power space this week. NRC approves EnergySolutions nuke plant license transfers following stock buyout The Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved EnergySolutions' request to transfer control of several of its shuttered nuclear power plants to […]

The company looking for state approval to purchase a Wisconsin nuclear power plant for decommissioning sought Wednesday to counter an advocacy group’s last-minute push for an independent technical review of the transaction, new filings show.  EnergySolutions told the Wisconsin Public Service Commission (WPSC) in a filing Wednesday that commissioners should ignore evidence submitted last week […]

Happy Friday, nuke-watchers. As your rad waste reporter heads back to Washington after a successful Idaho trip, here are some other stories RadWaste Monitor was tracking from across the civilian nuclear power space this week.   IAEA to visit Chernobyl, investigate alleged Russian trenches The U.N.’s nuclear authority plans to soon visit the Chernobyl Nuclear […]

The decommissioning company aiming to purchase a Wisconsin nuclear power plant expects that the state regulatory reviewing the transaction should make a decision before the summer, according to a recent letter to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The Wisconsin Public Service Commission (WPSC) has received its final party briefings and won’t hold any more hearings on […]