• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

PPL Susquehanna Unit 1 Generating Electricity Again

Posted on: Tuesday, 30 October 2007, 09:01 CDT

BERWICK, Pa., Oct. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Unit 1 at PPL's Susquehanna nuclear power plant in Luzerne County, Pa., began generating electricity again on Tuesday (10/30) after a planned maintenance outage to improve the operation of the rods used to control the nuclear reaction.

"Employees safely completed the work that will reduce the friction between the control rods and fuel assemblies and will improve the operation of plant equipment," said Neil Gannon, vice president of Nuclear Operations for PPL Susquehanna.

The planned outage was part of a comprehensive effort by PPL to address the friction issue, which is not unique to the Susquehanna plant, he said. Other nuclear power plants have experienced the problem as well.

Control rods, which can be inserted between the fuel bundles, are used to speed up, slow down or stop the nuclear reaction.

During the outage, plant workers completed other maintenance items to enhance the long-term reliability of Susquehanna Unit 1.

PPL scheduled the outage, which lasted nearly two-and-a-half weeks, for this time of year because electricity use is lower than in the summer or winter.

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 Corporation , headquartered in Allentown, Pa., 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/.

PPL Corporation

CONTACT: Lou Ramos of PPL Corporation, +1-570-759-2285, fax:+1-610-774-5281

Web site: http://www.pplweb.com/

Source: PRNewswire-FirstCall

More News in this Category