The single unit, 900 MW Shearon Harris nuclear power plant in North Carolina shut down after signs of corrosion and cracking were found.
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said on May 15 that further evaluation of ultrasonic data of the reactor vessel head penetrations showed a 0.26-inch flaw that exhibited characteristics of primary water stress corrosion cracking. The initial examinations were done per NRC requirements during the spring 2012 refueling outage.
Workers with plant operator Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK) shut down the plant to make repairs. There is no impact on the health or safety of the public or employees. Duke acquired the plant when it merged with Progress Energy in 2012.
Duke said earlier in May that it would not build two new units at the Harris plant, saying the units would not be needed in the next 15 years.
From:Nuclear Power International magazine