BERWICK, Pa., May 26, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Unit 2 at PPL
Corporation's Susquehanna nuclear
plant in Luzerne County, Pa.,
resumed generating safe, reliable electricity for the power grid
Monday (5/25) after completing its scheduled refueling and
maintenance outage.
Susquehanna's nuclear
professionals replaced approximately 40 percent of the unit's
uranium fuel, and performed maintenance and ongoing upgrades. The
Susquehanna plant's two generating
units have planned refueling and maintenance outages every 24
months.
"We made significant investments to further improve the safety
and long-term reliability of Unit 2," said Timothy S. Rausch, senior vice president and
Chief Nuclear Officer for PPL Susquehanna. "This included
installation of more than 200 new turbine blades and replacement of
a 24-ton pump and motor that circulates water through the plant's
reactor." In addition to Susquehanna's engineering, technical and
maintenance professionals, more than 1,000 supplemental workers
supported the endeavor.
The turbine modifications address blade cracking issues the
plant has experienced in the past. Similar modifications were
completed on Unit 1 in 2014. With modifications now complete on
both units, the Susquehanna plant
does not expect to require any additional special turbine
maintenance outages related to this issue.
Additionally, the plant recently completed construction of a new
facility, as well as testing and integration of enhanced portable
backup equipment that is part of the U.S. nuclear power industry's
response to the 2011 accident at the Fukushima plant in
Japan.
"Susquehanna has invested more
than $90 million in portable
equipment and supplies that are housed in a steel-reinforced
concrete building designed to survive catastrophic events. Along
with the facility and components, we have completed training with
our team of dedicated nuclear professionals to ensure the safety of
our facility," said Rausch, who was among the first group of U.S.
nuclear power executives to visit the Fukushima plant after the
accident.
With this investment the Susquehanna plant has strengthened an already
safe design. In conjunction with an industry commitment to be
prepared for the unexpected, the plant is now equipped to respond
to extreme natural disasters, as well as any event beyond the
original, conservative design requirements.
Susquehanna's Unit 1 reactor is
continuing to operate at full power and the plant, located in
Luzerne County about seven miles
north of Berwick, is owned jointly
by PPL Susquehanna LLC and Allegheny Electric Cooperative Inc. and
is operated by PPL Susquehanna.
PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL), with 2014 revenues of $11.5 billion, is one of the largest companies in
the U.S. utility sector. The PPL family of companies delivers
electricity and natural gas to about 10 million customers in
the United States and the
United Kingdom. More information
is available at www.pplweb.com.
Editor's Note: On June 1,
2015, PPL Energy Supply, LLC, parent company of the PPL
subsidiary that owns and operates the Susquehanna plant, will separate from PPL
Corporation and merge with Riverstone Holdings LLC to form Talen
Energy, a new competitive power generating business. On
June 1, Talen Energy will be listed
(NYSE: TLN) and become one of the largest competitive energy and
power generation companies in North
America. Its diverse generating fleet will represent about
14,000 megawatts of capacity in well-developed, structured
wholesale power markets.
Note to Editors: Visit our media website at www.pplnewsroom.com
for additional news and background about PPL Corporation.
Contact: Todd L. Martin,
607-343-1606, tlmartin@pplweb.com
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visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/unit-2-at-susquehanna-nuclear-plant-returns-to-service-300088406.html
SOURCE PPL Corporation