BERWICK, Pa., Oct. 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Operators at PPL's Susquehanna nuclear power plant in Luzerne County, Pa., safely shut down the Unit 1 reactor Saturday (10/13) for planned maintenance to improve operation of the rods that are used to control the nuclear reaction.
"This planned outage is part of our comprehensive effort to correct increased friction between control rods and the fuel bundles that surround them," said Neil Gannon, vice president of Nuclear Operations for PPL Susquehanna. "The condition is not unique to Susquehanna; it's been identified and corrected in other nuclear power plants."
PPL chose to perform this work in the fall, when electricity use is lower than in the summer and winter, and replacement power is less expensive.
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. Control rods can be inserted between the fuel bundles to speed up, slow down or stop the nuclear reaction.
"We will draw on our experience and proven industry techniques to reduce friction between the control rods and fuel bundles," Gannon said. "We've already successfully completed similar work on Susquehanna Unit 2."
In addition to addressing the friction issue, PPL will perform other maintenance during this planned outage, and expects to restart the Unit 1 reactor in about three weeks.
The plant's Unit 2 reactor continues to operate at full power.
The projected cost of the outage, including the expected cost of replacement power, is reflected in PPL Corporation's previously announced 2007 earnings forecasts.
The Susquehanna plant, located in Luzerne County about seven miles north of Berwick, is owned jointly by PPL Susquehanna, LLC and Allegheny Electric Cooperative Inc. and is operated by PPL Susquehanna.
Susquehanna is one of PPL Corporation's generating facilities. Headquartered in Allentown, Pa., PPL Corporation controls more than 11,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the United States, sells energy in key U.S. markets and delivers electricity to about 4 million customers in Pennsylvania and the United Kingdom. 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.
