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Because of state resistance to relicensing the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Thursday that Entergy cannot count on revenue from its 20-year federal license extension at the plant to fund the account that will eventually pay for its decommissioning. In a letter, NRC staff addressed a notice from Entergy that it would cancel a $40 million parent-company guarantee...

Entergy has communicated to its employees that the company’s board of directors voted to approve the fabrication of fuel and the refueling of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in October. This will be the plant’s 29th refueling. While the company has received a 20-year license extension from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the state of Vermont has refused to grant a certificate of public good to...

AREVA DZ, LLC, a joint venture of AREVA and Day & Zimmerman ECM, has signed agreements with Entergy Nuclear for future upgrades at all nine Entergy nuclear plant sites. The five-year agreements include full-scope Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) services for capital projects to upgrade the sites for future operations. Entergy’s nuclear fleet includes Pilgrim, Vermont Yankee, Indian Point, Palisades...

As Entergy turns to the courts in its effort to relicense the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant, Green Mountain Power Co. has announced a 23-year contract with the Seabrook plant in neighboring New Hampshire. Green Mountain officials quoted by the Associated Press Tuesday said they decided to buy power from NextEra Energy's Seabrook nuclear plant because of uncertainty surrounding efforts by Vermont's...

“Despite the fact that Vermont Yankee is important to the reliability of the New England electric transmission grid, emits virtually no greenhouse gases, and provides more than $100 million in annual economic benefits to the state of Vermont, it has been made clear that state officials are singularly focused on shutting down the plant. That has left us with no other choice but to seek relief in the court system...

Entergy has announced that after offering its Vermont Yankee nuclear plant up for sale, it has not found a buyer. As quoted in a press release issued late Wednesday, Entergy Wholesale Commodities President Richard Smith said, “although we received interest from a number of companies, the conclusion of the sale process, without a sale, was driven primarily by the uncertain political environment in Vermont...

A temporary staffing shortage at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will delay the relicensing of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant. Commission staff were scheduled to issue the renewal last Thursday, but the agency’s attention in recent days has been focused on a series of earthquake and tsunami triggered emergencies at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Several NRC staff members have...

In a letter to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Vermont legislators lodged their opposition to a long-term waste-storage plan known as SAFSTOR at the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant. The Vermont Yankee’s license expires in 2012, and plant owner Entergy has indicated it will use SAFSTORE to defer decommissioning until the company collects enough money in a special fund for that purpose. Under the associated...

Entergy has responded to a letter they received that questions the reliability of Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant. The attached letter states facts that Vermont Yankee has proven to be a very reliable plant and shows how Entergy has invested more than $400 Million in improvements to the plant.

"Today marks an unfortunate milestone for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as the timeline for the reactor renewal process has now doubled without explanation, eclipsing 60 months with no end in sight for the Pilgrim and Vermont Yankee plants," said Congressman Upton Congressman Fred Upton (R-MI), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, called on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to provide...

The Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Commission voted in favor for allowing 36 other states to dispose of their LLW at the Waste Control Specialists (WCS) site in Texas. The 5-2 vote by the Commission came after last-minute legal maneuvering on Monday by the environmentalists failed to delay the meeting. WCS CEO Bill Lindquist told reporters he is expecting some legal challenges to the commission's...

Entergy Nuclear's earnings increased as a result of higher net revenue resulting primarily from higher generation due to fewer planned and unplanned outage days and the absence of significant impairments associated with decommissioning trusts recorded in second quarter 2009. - Source: Entergy Corporation - Entergy Corporation (NYSE: ETR) reported second quarter 2010 as-reported earnings of $315.3 million, or...

ANS Report Shows Fleet Operates at More Than 90 Percent of Capacity - By Linton Levy - Nuclear energy continues to be the most reliable energy source in the United States with Entergy’s nuclear fleet leading the way, according to a report released by the American Nuclear Society. In the report released in May 2010, the median rating capacity factor for Entergy’s 11 nuclear plants was 90.8 percent...

Based on the results of this inspection, the NRC determined that Entergy-Vermont Yankee (ENVY) appropriately evaluated the contaminated groundwater with respect to off-site effluent release limits and the resulting radiological impact to public health and safety; and that ENVY complied with all applicable regulatory requirements and standards pertaining to radiological effluent monitoring, dose assessment, and radiological...

Under the new contract, Shaw will provide engineering, procurement and construction services designed to add approximately 178 megawatts of power generation to Grand Gulf Nuclear Station - By Stephen Heiser - The Shaw Group has announced it has been awarded a contract with Entergy Operation, Inc., a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation, to provide extended power uprate (EPU) plant modifications at Grand Gulf Nuclear...

In a 114-page report filed last week, Entergy Corp. said its agents and representatives gave incomplete answers to questions by the state Public Service Board and should have corrected them later, but that they never tried to deceive -Edited by Linton Levy - Independent Investigation Report Commissioned by Entergy Turned Over to Vermont Attorney General No Intent to Mislead Found, But Some Communication Was Incomplete...

The NRC has significantly increased its inspection oversight at the site to ensure the plant owner, Entergy, identifies the source of contamination, stops the leak into the groundwater and takes aggressive steps to prevent recurrence - Source NRC - Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials say that while the groundwater contamination at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon, Vt., has had no impact on...

NRC Region I Administrator Samuel J. Collins said, “We understand that members of the public are concerned about the tritium issue at Vermont Yankee. These two forums give the public the opportunity to have their questions addressed by NRC staff." - Source NRC - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold an open house and public meeting on Monday, April 19 in Brattleboro, Vt., regarding groundwater contamination...

The successful effort to identify the source of the leakage, fix the problem and prevent a recurrence capped an intense and rigorous effort by Entergy with the oversight of state and federal regulators that began in January when elevated levels of the radionuclide tritium were detected in monitoring wells built for that purpose. - Edited by Stephen Heiser - Entergy Corporation today announced it has identified...

A press conference, which is open to the public, is scheduled for Jan. 4 at 1 p.m. in the Cedar Creek Room in the Vermont Statehouse - Edited by Linton Levy - A report in the Brattleboro Reformer has found that, the Vermont Building and Construction Trades Council, a partnership of 15 labor unions that represent several thousand workers in Vermont, will be in Montpelier on Jan. 4 at 1 p.m. to urge state legislators...

Nuclear-power plant spin off gets greenlight from DPS - Edited by Stephen Heiser - According to a report by the Associated Press, The Vermont Department of Public Service has announced that it has reached a deal with Entergy Corp. over a proposal to sell Vermont Yankee to a new spinoff company provides assurances that the company will have the finances to operate the nuclear-power plant. The announcement was...

Entergy gets 6-month extension from the NRC for spinoff - By Linton Levy - According to an AP report, The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has given Entergy Corp. an extra six months to try to win state approvals and get financing to spin off five nuclear plants in New England, New York and Michigan. Enexus hopes to spin off Enexus Energy Corp. as a new company to own the plants: Pilgrim in Plymouth, Mass.; Vermont...

Nuclear spin off legal process will stretch out into the fall of 2009 - By Mark McFadden - Entergy has filed a proposal with utility regulators in New York state in an effort to get approval of its long-running plan to spin off some of its nuclear assets into Enexus, a separate company. Under the plan, Entergy would spin off six nuclear power plants involved in the wholesale power business into Enexus, which is...

Atomic Safety and Licensing Board knocks down one of the last hurdles to final federal approval - Edited by April Murelio - According to a report by the Rutland Herald, The Atomic Safety and Licensing Board has knocked down one of the last hurdles to final federal approval for another 20 years of operation of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant. The board rsponsible for the plant held hearings last summer in Newfane...

New Resident Inspectors named at Wolf Creek, Clumbia, and Vermont Yankee - By Stephen Heiser - The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has assigned Charles Peabody as the new resident inspector at the Wolf Creek nuclear plant in Burlington, Ks. The plant is operated by Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corp. “Charles Peabody’s technical and regulatory experience will assist the NRC in carrying out its mission...