NRC RENEWS LICENSE FOR VIRGIL C. SUMMER NUCLEAR STATION, UNIT 1, FOR AN ADDITIONAL 20 YEARS
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The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has renewed the operating license of the Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Station, Unit 1, located in Fairfield County, S.C., for an additional 20 years. The plant is operated by South Carolina Electric & Gas Company (SCE&G).

SCE&G submitted its license renewal application to the NRC on August 6, 2002. The renewal extends the license for Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Station, Unit 1, from August 6, 2022, to August 6, 2042.

The NRC’s environmental review is described in a site-specific supplement to the NRC’s “Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Power Plants," (NUREG-1437, Supplement 15). In the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, issued in February 2004, the staff concluded that there were no impacts that would preclude renewal of the license for environmental reasons. Two public meetings to discuss the environmental review were held near the plant on December 11, 2002, and August 26, 2003.

In its “Safety Evaluation Report Related to the License Renewal of Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Station, Unit 1,” issued in March 2004, the NRC staff concluded that there were no safety concerns that would preclude license renewal, because the licensee had demonstrated the capability to manage the effects of plant aging. In addition, the NRC conducted inspections of the plants to verify information submitted by the licensee. The Safety Evaluation Report is available on the NRC Web site at this address: http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/summer.html.

On March 17, 2004, the Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards -- an independent body of technical experts which advises the Commission -- issued its recommendation that the operating license for the plant be renewed. That recommendation is contained in "Report on the Safety Aspects of the License Renewal Application for the Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Station, Unit 1." A copy of this document is available on the NRC Web site at this address: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/acrs/letters/2004/5102067.pdf .

The Virgil C. Summer license renewal brings the total number of renewals to 25 units. A complete listing of completed renewal applications, as well as those currently under review, can be found on the NRC’s Web site at this address:
http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications.html.

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Last revised Friday, April 23, 2004