BERWICK, Pa., Sept. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Operators at PPL's Susquehanna nuclear power plant in Luzerne County, Pa., safely shut down the Unit 2 reactor Saturday (9/30) for planned maintenance to improve operation of the rods that are used to control the nuclear reaction.
Through routine testing, plant operators identified increased friction between some of the unit's 185 control rods and the uranium fuel bundles that surround them. This condition is not unique to the Susquehanna plant; it has been identified in other nuclear power plants.
Control rods, which can be inserted between the fuel bundles, are used to speed up, slow down or stop the nuclear reaction.
"This planned outage is part of a comprehensive and ongoing effort to correct control rod friction. We are drawing on our experience and industry proven techniques to reduce friction between control rods and fuel bundles," said Robert A. Saccone, vice president of Nuclear Operations for PPL Susquehanna.
PPL chose to perform this work now, at a time when electricity use is lower than in the summer and winter, and replacement power is less expensive. PPL expects Unit 2 to be generating electricity again in about three weeks.
"We want to minimize the risk of an unscheduled shutdown at a time of the year when people use more electricity," Saccone said.
The projected cost of the outage, including the expected cost of replacement power, is reflected in PPL Corporation's previously announced 2006 earnings forecasts.
The plant's Unit 1 reactor continues to operate at full power.
The Susquehanna plant, located about seven miles north of Berwick, is jointly owned by PPL Susquehanna LLC and Allegheny Electric Cooperative, and is operated by PPL Susquehanna.
PPL Susquehanna is one of PPL Corporation's generating facilities. Headquartered in Allentown, Pa., PPL Corporation controls about 11,500 megawatts of generating capacity in the United States, sells energy in key U.S. markets and delivers electricity to nearly 5 million customers in Pennsylvania, the United Kingdom and Latin America. More information is available at http://www.pplweb.com/.
Statements contained in this news release, including statements with respect to future earnings and generation outage costs and timing, are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Although PPL Corporation believes that the expectations and assumptions reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, these statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in the statements. The following are among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements: market demand and prices for energy, capacity and fuel; operating performance of plants and other facilities; and receipt of any necessary government approvals or other regulatory developments. Any such forward-looking statements should be considered in light of such important factors and in conjunction with PPL
Corporation's Form 10-K and other reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
