Federal regulators are increasing their oversight of Unit 1 at the Sequoyah Nuclear Power Plant near Chattanooga as a result of the frequency of unplanned shutdowns at the facility.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission, after its quarterly review of plant performance in October, updated its assessment of Unit 1, which is operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority.
“Overall, the Sequoyah plant is operating safely,” said NRC Acting Region II Administrator Len Wert in a statement. “However, these shutdowns point to potential performance issues and we want to ensure that TVA addresses them appropriately.”
Jim Hopson, a TVA spokesman, said the utility is taking the NRC feedback seriously.
Sequoyah Nuclear Plant“We’ve already placed initial corrective actions into place to improve overall performance,” he said. “We’ll continue to look at that. We’ll focus on trying to get Unit 1 back into regular oversight status.”