NRC: News Release - 2001-090 - NRC To Meet With Proposed Mixed Oxide Fuel Facility Applicant To Discuss NRC Requests for Additional Information

				Search Options
Index \| Site Map \| FAQ \| Facility Info \| Reading Rm \| New \| Help \| Glossary \| Contact Us

NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Office of Public Affairs	Telephone: 301/415-8200
Washington, DC 20555-0001	E-mail: opa@nrc.gov
www.nrc.gov

No. 01-090

July 19, 2001

NRC TO MEET WITH PROPOSED MIXED OXIDE FUEL FACILITY APPLICANT TO DISCUSS NRC REQUESTS FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will meet with Duke Cogema Stone & Webster on July 26, in North Augusta, South Carolina, to clarify NRC requests for information regarding the consortium's request to build a mixed oxide (MOX) fuel fabrication facility.

The Department of Energy is proposing to construct the facility on its Savannah River site near Aiken, South Carolina, through a contract with a consortium of Duke Engineering & Services, COGEMA, Inc., and Stone & Webster (together known as DCS). If NRC grants the license, DCS could build a MOX facility that would convert surplus weapons-grade plutonium, supplied by the Department of Energy, into fuel for use in a limited number of commercial nuclear power reactors. Commercial nuclear power plants in the United States currently use only uranium as fuel; the mixed oxide fuel would be a combination of uranium and plutonium. There would be no reprocessing or subsequent reuse of the spent fuel. Converting weapons-grade plutonium into MOX fuel helps advance the cause of nonproliferation by converting the material into a form unsuitable for use in weapons.

The meeting will be held from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. at the North Augusta Community Center, 495 Brookside Avenue, North Augusta, South Carolina. It will be open to the public for observation. Starting the last hour, the NRC will address questions and comments from the public.

Persons planning to attend the meeting or who would like additional information should contact Timothy Johnson at 301-415-7299 or Wilkins Smith at 301-415-5788.

Copies of the February 28 DCS construction application and the NRC June 21 request for additional information are available through the NRC's on-line Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) at Accession Numbers ML010650204 and ML011860493, respectively. Help in using ADAMS is available through the agency's Public Document Room (PDR) at 301-415-4737 or 1-800-397-4209. The PDR will also provide a paper copy for a fee.