Seabrook nuke plant clears hurdles in license extension quest
SEABROOK -- NextEra Energy this week scored two significant wins in its eight-year battle to gain final approval of a 20-year license extension for its Seabrook nuclear power plant from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards on Wednesday sent a letter to NRC Chairwoman Kristine Svinicki. The ACRS, an independent body of experts advising the commissioners on nuclear safety matters, recommended: “NextEra’s application for renewal of the operating license for Seabrook (Station) should be approved.”
According to the letter, its recommendation came after ACRS members reviewed NextEra’s license amendment application, as well as the NRC staff’s final safety evaluations and documentation related to Seabrook Station and its problems with a concrete-degradation phenomenon known as alkali-silica reaction.
According to its letter, the ACRS concluded the methods NextEra established and has committed to for monitoring and managing ASR in the plant’s structures, “provide reasonable assurance that Seabrook can be operated in accordance with its licensing basis for the extended operation without undue risk of the health and safety of the public.”
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