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United States nuclear plant unfit for quick resurrection, previous lead engineer states

The very first U.S. nuclear plant to ever try resuming after undergoing preparations for long-term closure is not fit to restart anytime soon because it avoided essential safety work for years before retirement, a. former official at the reactor stated.

Power company Entergy closed the Palisades reactor. in Michigan in 2022, after the plant generated electrical power for. more than 50 years. Privately-held Holtec International purchased. Palisades soon after and has given that secured a $1.52 billion. conditional U.S. loan assurance to restart. Holtec looks for to open. the plant in about a year.

The fate of Palisades is closely seen by the nuclear. industry as at least 2 other shuttered plants, consisting of a. unit at Constellation Energy's 3 Mile Island,. think about reopening.

The administration of President Joe Biden sees nuclear power. as an important tool in the fight against climate change and. supports efforts to restart closed plants, delay retirements of. existing ones, and speed permitting for new tasks.

I'm pro-nuclear, however they selected the incorrect horse to ride. to town on, said Alan Blind, who was engineering director at. the Palisades plant from 2006 to 2013 under Entergy.

Blind said the plant got exemptions from the U.S. Nuclear. Regulatory Commission, the nuclear safety regulator, allowing it. to disappoint safety design requirements that more modern-day plants. need to comply with since it was nearing retirement.

Those security standards consist of prevention of cooling systems. being obstructed by the breakdown of insulation on pipes, defense. versus earthquakes, and reduction of threats to fires, Blind. said, adding he had been monitoring the plants' exemption. demands given that his retirement.

I'm worried that the NRC will not insist that the generic. security issues be the fixed before they allow Palisades to. restart, Blind told Reuters.

Scott Burnell, an NRC representative, stated the security review. of Holtec's applications will include taking a look at how Holtec. plans to follow through on technical problems, such as what Mr. Blind describes, that were unresolved when the plant closed down. in 2022.

Those strategies will be public to the greatest degree. possible, and the NRC will allow a reboot only if Holtec fulfills. safety and environmental requirements. Burnell added NRC will. soon offer an opportunity to use legal challenges to Holtec's. requests to restart, a guideline.

Holtec thinks Palisades can restart in about a year within. the NRC's existing regulatory framework, said spokesperson Pat. O'Brien. As part of the repowering, Palisades will go through. comprehensive inspections, testing, upkeep, system and. equipment upgrades and modifications to ensure the continuation. of safe and dependable operation throughout the plant's extended. functional life, O'Brien stated.

Entergy supports the effort to re-open Palisades, said. representative Mark Sullivan. He did talk about Blind's concerns. about safety standards at the plant.

Entergy shut Palisades in May 2022, 2 weeks ahead of. schedule over a problem with a control rod, despite a $6 billion. federal program to save nuclear plants struggling with increasing. expenses and competitors from natural gas and renewable energy.

The Biden administration's Loan Programs Office at the. Department of Energy provided Holtec a conditional $1.52 billion. loan guarantee in March to reboot Palisades.

The LPO referred concerns to the NRC.

(source: Reuters)