NRC: News Release - Region IV - 2003-006 - NRC to Meet with STP Nuclear Operating Co. To Discuss Performance of South Texas Project

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NRC NEWS
U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs, Region IV
611 Ryan Plaza Drive, Suite 400, Arlington TX 76011
www.nrc.gov

No. IV-03-006		March 17, 2003
CONTACT:	Victor Dricks Phone: 817-860-8128	E-mail: opa4@nrc.gov
NRC TO MEET WITH STP NUCLEAR OPERATING CO. TO DISCUSS PERFORMANCE OF SOUTH TEXAS PROJECT Printable Version
Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of STP Nuclear Operating Company, on Monday, March 24, to discuss the results of the agency’s annual assessment of safety performance at the South Texas Project nuclear plant. The facility, which has two operating reactors, is located near Bay City, Texas. The meeting, which will be open to the public for observation, is scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. at the Bay City Civic Center, 201 Seventh Street, Bay City, TX. Before the session is adjourned, NRC staff will be available to answer questions from the public on the safety performance of the plant, as well as the role of the NRC in ensuring safe plant operation. The performance period to be discussed is January 1 to December 31, 2002. In addition, NRC staff will provide an overview of how the agency's Reactor Oversight Process works. A letter sent from the NRC Region IV Office to STP Nuclear Operating Co. addresses the performance of the plant during the period and will serve as the basis for the meeting discussion. It is available on the NRC web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/stp_2002q4.pdf . "Overall, South Texas Project Electric Generating Station operated in a manner that preserved public health and safety and fully met all cornerstone objectives," the letter says. However, because the number of automatic reactor shutdowns at Unit 2 exceeded a threshold, NRC will schedule and conduct a supplemental inspection there, in addition to the baseline inspections at the site. In addition, the letter notes: "As you are aware, since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the NRC has issued several Orders and threat advisories to enhance security capabilities and improve guard force readiness. We have conducted inspections to review your implementation of these requirements and have monitored your actions in response to changing threat advisories. For calendar year 2003, we plan to continue these inspections and conduct portions of the security baseline inspection program, as well as perform additional inspections to evaluate your compliance with new requirements that may be ordered." Current performance information for South Texas Project Unit 1 is available on the NRC web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/STP1/stp1_chart.html Unit 2 information is at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/STP2/stp2_chart.html.