BERWICK, Pa., April 12, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --Operators at PPL's Susquehanna nuclear power plant disconnected the Unit 1 reactor from the electrical grid Saturday (4/12) to begin a scheduled refueling and maintenance outage.
While the reactor is shut down, workers will replace about 40 percent of the uranium fuel and complete a number of equipment maintenance tasks and upgrades. The plant also will be investing millions to upgrade equipment with state-of-the-art technology and to perform thousands of routine maintenance tasks that keep the plant in good condition.
"We're committed to significant investments of time and money to keep our plant operating safely and reliably," said Timothy S. Rausch, senior vice president and Chief Nuclear Officer. "The large amount of work we put into our outages brings additional jobs and other economic benefits to the communities surrounding the plant."
PPL schedules nuclear refueling and maintenance outages at this time of year, when seasonal temperatures bring less electricity use and the demand on the regional power grid is lower. Each of the two units at the Susquehanna plant is taken out of service for refueling and maintenance every 24 months.
Unit 2 continues to operate at full power.
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.
PPL Susquehanna LLC is one of PPL Corporation's generating affiliates. PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL), with 2013 revenues of $12 billion, is one of the largest companies in the U.S. utility sector. The PPL family of companies delivers electricity and natural gas to about 10 million customers in the United States and the United Kingdom, owns more than 18,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the United States and sells energy in key U.S. markets. More information is available at www.pplsusquehanna.com and www.pplweb.com.
SOURCE PPL Susquehanna
