What these guys got in common?
1) All on the way to permanent shutdown.
2) Unprofitable
3) Horrendous capacity factor problem.
3) Worst two plants in the USA.
Next Grand Gulf will have shutdown.
I could make the case these weak plants are steeling money from the other nuclear plants. This could knock a marginal good operating plant.
Pilgrim Powers Down Due to Faulty Valve
January 5, 2019
The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth is yet again operating at sharply reduced capacity following as officials continue to deal with valve issues at the plant.
As of yesterday, the facility was working at 23% capacity as workers deal with the problem.
In a statement to CapeCod.com, Pilgrim spokesman Patrick O’Brien that the power reduction came as a result of prescheduled maintenance.
“Pilgrim is currently operating at reduced power due to a scheduled backwash of the main condenser,” he explained.
According to Pilgrim, backwashes are routine maintenance conducted 5-6 times annually to ensure safe and reliable operation of the main condenser by removing mussel growth.
During this power reduction officials at the plant will also be conducting other scheduled maintenance and testing, and would not indicate when they expect to return to full power.
Valves are responsible for regulating water flow into nuclear reactors, and keeping them fully operational has been a consistent issue at the Plymouth facility.
Similar valve issues have led to a number of unplanned shutdowns of the plant this year alone.
Pilgrim is set to permanently close in mid-2019.
Palisades reactor shut down Thursday night
COVERT — Palisades nuclear power plant operators manually shut down the reactor Thursday after fluctuations of a turbine governor valve.
“These types of valves control the flow of steam to the turbine,” Palisades spokeswoman Val Gent said.
The event happened just before midnight Thursday and was classified as a non-emergency.
Gent said all systems responded as expected during the shutdown.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission reported that “all full-length control rods inserted fully. Auxiliary Feedwater System actuated as designed in response to low steam generator water levels.”
Gent said the plant is currently in a safe and stable condition and at no time was the health and safety of the public or plant challenged.
A detailed analysis of the cause and subsequent repair plan is underway.
Palisades returned to service Dec. 28 after a scheduled refueling and maintenance outage that began on Oct. 28. Only one more planned outage is scheduled before the plant is closed in spring of 2022.
Contact: anewman@TheHP.com, 932-0357, Twitter: @HPANewman
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