The NRC has denied Duke Energy’s request for more time to transition to a revised fire protection system at Oconee Nuclear. Duke had wanted a two-year extension. The NRC’s decision was contained in a letter yesterday to Preston Gillespie, site vice president at Oconee. According to a safety evaluation prepared by the NRC, Duke in 2006 disclosed plans to install a new protected service water system for the three reactors and had first committed to having the system installed by the end of 2010. And, as basis for its decision, NRC stated, “…the request to extend the schedule would extend the duration for which Duke would operate Oconee in a higher risk environment, which is a request to change the existing license. Also, the risk increase associated with this request is far greater than that specified as acceptable….”
